“I will make with them an everlasting covenant, that I will not turn away from doing good to them. . . . I will rejoice in doing them good.” ( Jeremiah 32:40 40 and I will make an everlasting covenant with them, that I will not turn away from following them, to do them good; and I will put my fear in their hearts, that they may not depart from me. –41)

This is one of those promises of God that I come back to again and again when I get discouraged. Can you think of any fact more encouraging than that God rejoices to do you good? Not just does you good. Not just is committed to doing you good — glorious as that is. But that he rejoices to do you good. “I will rejoice in doing them good.”

He doesn’t begrudgingly fulfill the promise in Romans 8:28- 28 And we know that to them that love God all things work together for good, `even' to them that are called according to `his' purpose. work everything together for our good. It is his joy to do you good. And not just sometimes. Always! “I will not turn away from doing good to them.” There are no lapses in his commitment or in his joy in doing good to his children — to those who trust him.

That should make us so glad!

But sometimes it is hard to be glad. Our situation is so hard to bear that we just can’t muster any joy. When that happens to me, I try to imitate Abraham: “In hope he believed against hope” ( Romans 4:18 18 Who in hope believed against hope, to the end that he might become a father of many nations, according to that which had been spoken, So shall thy seed be. ). In other words, you look your hopeless situation in the face and say, “You are not as strong as God! He can do the impossible. And I know he loves to do it for those who trust him. So, hopelessness, you will not have the last say. I trust God!”

God has always been faithful to guard that little spark of faith for me and eventually (not always right away) fan it into a flame of happiness and full confidence. And Jeremiah 32:41 41 Yea, I will rejoice over them to do them good, and I will plant them in this land assuredly with my whole heart and with my whole soul. is a great part of that joy.

Oh, how glad I am that what makes the heart of almighty God happy includes doing good for you and me! “I will rejoice in doing them good.”