This year for our midweek Lent worship services, we at Trinity Lutheran in Nampa, Idaho are journeying towards the Easter by reading through the Easter Vigil texts. We began this week with the creation story from Genesis 1.

I read a devotion by Richard Rohr and then posed this question, “What difference does it make that God calls creation good?”  Here is a sampling of answers:

It is encouraging and uplifting, moves me forward rather than making me pause and wonder and look back.

That what was created by God is Good–We can make it bad.

Affirmation, comes to mind, of birth, death, resurrection, forgiveness of sin. It’s all good.

This is good is a positive statement and a direction

We need to have good in our lives to keep going.

Who would want to worship a creator who created “bad” stuff through violence!? One who uses love and goodness is worthy of being worshipped.

God’s goodness drives all things.

It makes all the difference in the world. With God we have good, we see good. Without Him we see only darkness.

It is freedom to be fully ones self, to be whole.

The alpha and omega.

Without the beginning, where would we be now.

A creation that is good is a reason to hope for good in the world and work for restoration of creation in the face of destruction.