You doing good??? I don’t mean your health or welfare. I don’t mean showing competency on the court or field, the classroom, the workplace, the office or boardroom. I mean … Are you bringing good to others?

Doing good is a dynamo and the most beautiful dynamite. It changes people. It changes societies. It changes me. All for the better. 

It fixes far more than capitalism, socialism, democracy, communism or any other sociopolitical movement can. It destroys the very core that breeds all forms of fascism and racism. 

It stops riots and quiets protests. It heals the urge for tyranny. It richly blesses both giver and receiver. It creates consistent wins.

Note four good words accented in today’s verse. Ponder and pivot with me.

THEREFORE: This word suggests something big is coming, like a dagger three-pointer or 60-foot putt is about to drop and change everything for the better. 

As the book of Galatians wraps up, God wants people to understand that doing good is so much at the heart of the gospel. It is the purest expression of it. We are not just saved, but saved to serve. We get to give, not just get to keep.

ALL: Do good to all people. That means people we know and respect and those we don’t, those who share our ancestry or opinion and those who don’t. It means that gender, race, school, criminal record, politics, religion, economic status, and social class don’t dictate who gets our good. 

It also means that our good must even go to those we don’t like or struggle to forgive. And it means doing good to those who can’t possibly or won’t ever repay us. God says they all get our good.

ESPECIALLY: If you’re a Christian, the Bible says to treat the family of God especially well. Why? It’s not because they are more deserving or others are less deserving. It’s simply because how we treat our spiritual family determines whether others outside will want in too. 

The family of God grows and multiplies when outsiders see it working beautifully and enviably want in. Just like in recruiting, people want to join a great, winning culture.

OPPORTUNITY: Every day brings multiple opportunities to do good. They abound more than we think. Recognize and reverence their arrivals. Seize them as they come. Bring good as God’s Spirit leads.

Reflect: What good are you doing? How well is your doing good reflecting the gospel you say you believe?

A prayer to consider: LORD, I see Your gospel, Your good news, as far better than any other system this world offers and our only real hope. Help me to live it out richly in doing good, trusting You to take care of me. 

May others envy this culture of care and want in too. I pray that the good I do brings You great honor and kind benefit to others. They need joy and relief, truth and hope in this world. 

Expand my practice of “all” It can be too narrow sometimes. Thank You that You included me in Your definition of “all.” In Jesus name I play. Amen.