“I have chosen to be faithful; I have determined to live by your laws.” Psalm 119:30, NLT
“I have chosen the way of truth; I have set my heart on your laws.” Psalm 119:30, NIV
“I choose the true road to Somewhere, I post your road signs at every curve and corner.” Msg
Make a choice!
The Psalmist has had his ups and downs, but he has determinedly chosen to live a life of faith and to walk with Truth. He is focused and intentional, with heart, mind and soul, to live a life that leads to purpose…to “Somewhere” instead of a road that leads to nowhere. He has chosen.
This passage begs us to make a choice. What am I choosing today? Am I faithful? Am I determined to follow what God’s Word tells me? Have I “set my heart” to go “Somewhere” with God in control of the destination or am I bent on going nowhere? Do I post road signs of faith that are visible to others as I travel the true road? What do others see as I live life?
This is timely for me today, and maybe for you. Randy and I have a decision of faith to make financially today. Randy and I have decided together to choose faith once again. We know, we have set our hearts, we believe and trust, and we fully rely on God’s Promises. He has never failed us. Why start now to doubt?
How do we choose and develop this trust and faith?
1. BELIEVE in the Truth as the person of Jesus Christ. He is the way, the truth and the life…in THAT order. Accept that the WAY to God is through Jesus. He will open Your eyes to TRUTH. Abundant LIFE follows accepting and knowing and truly living. 
2. REMAIN. Remain attached to The Vine. “Remain in me, and I will remain in you. For a branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine, and you cannot be fruitful unless you remain in me.” –Jesus (John 15:4, NLT) 
Now it’s your turn. Choose.
Dear Heavenly Father, I pray for all of us reading this today as we choose daily who we will listen to and follow. We choose You, as Your Holy Spirit guides us in all decisions and details of this day. Give us this day, all we need, to remain in you and you in us. That is our desire, to set our hearts on You and Your will. In Jesus Name, Amen
“I weep with grief; encourage me by your word. Keep me from lying to myself; give me the privilege of knowing your law.” Psalm 119:28,29, NLT
“My sad life’s dilapidated, a falling-down barn; build me up again by your Word. Barricade the road that goes Nowhere; grace me with your clear revelation.” Psalm 119:28,29, Msg
It’s another bad day for the Psalmist as his mind takes a nose dive back into grieving over his past sins and crying out to God to use His Word to know the Word so well that he will not sin again.
There is a very good lesson in knowing the word so that we might not sin, but the underlying message of God’s Word to us is so that we will know HIM more and be reminded of how much we are loved and cared for no matter what. We demand perfection in ourselves because we know God requires us “to do what is right, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with our God”. Micah 6:8, NLT But we are not God and we are not perfect.
Our constant adversary, satan knows that uses all our weak points with putting thoughts in our minds of all the ways we are not perfect, all the times we messed up, all the conversations we had with others that made us feel less than perfect. We can use God’s Word to battle this kind of “self talk” and turn grief into pure, holy joy in knowing our God is a forgiving God and remembers our sins no more! Amen! Can I get an amen?
Keep this chart handy that I have included below. It is a very helpful way to combat satan’s very old trick of planting seeds of doubts in our minds…think of the Truth of the Word. We are set free from our past mistakes for future glory all because Jesus paid it all when He opened his hands to receive the nails that took away ALL our sin. So be encouraged! Move on! That’s where God can do His best work…through people who live knowing they are sin-debt-free!
Dear Heavenly Father, We pray for all who are reading this today for Your pure, holy, eternal joy unspeakable would overwhelm their souls…as well as mine…as we go about “this day”, that You have given us, knowing and believing what Your Word says and then living it…outloud!
In Jesus Name, Amen
My husband, the analyzer, has taught me to look closer at life in many different ways. Did you see that? Did you see how that happened? Did you catch the meaning of that part of the movie when…?
In my rush to do life’s chores and other mundane challenges, I often miss God’s working in and through me, through situations, and slightly forget that I prayed for something that He just answered. Life is too fast.
Does life control us or does God control us? That’s the bigger question. We would notice God’s happenings and daily miracles more often the deeper we focus on Him.
The Psalmist has good days and bad…today’s words from him see to be a better day,
“Help me understand the meaning of your commandments, and I will meditate on your wonderful miracles.”
Psalm 119:27, NLT
“Help me understand these things inside and out so I can ponder your miracle-wonders.” The Message
HOW?
Know God more and more as we read His Word about His character and the way He works. Remember He is God and we are not.
Wake up each day grateful for the miracle of…waking up!
LOOK for ways God’s miracles are transforming you from the inside out with His Word, others he puts into your life to help you, and the changing way you begin to treat others. Those are miracle-wonders. We can’t transform ourselves. We need God’s miracle working power to be all He intended for us to be…before the doing or serving in His Work.
NOTICE all miracles from tiny to terrific. It will put a new smile on your face and greater vigor in your step!
Dear Heavenly Father, Today I will teach first graders. Help me to notice and ponder all your miracles all day long as I meditate on this part of your Word. In Jesus Name, Amen
“When I told my story, you responded; train me well in your deep wisdom.” Psalm 119:26, The Msg
This is a pivotal verse in the longest lament or chapter in the Bible. He has told his story, all of it, honestly, with sadness, repentance, but with the knowledge that God hears and responds to his cries. That’s why he cries out to God first and foremost because of the knowledge he has gained from God’s Word that it is acceptable to do just that.
Taking stock of our lives, remembering the good and the bad, and evaluating what was helpful and what hurt us and others is a great story to tell…to God…who knows us better and loves us more than anyone else. “Tell it to Jesus, tell it to Jesus”…as the old hymn says, is a good exercise in assessing one’s life, if it leads to what the Psalmist is after…more of God and His wisdom.
Wisdom, skills for living this life here on earth, comes from experience, knowledge of right from wrong and applying it at the right time and place, and it is deemed as “common sense”. Not all people live with wisdom. They merely survive.
After recounting his life to God, who knew it in the first place, is as important for the Psalmist in the repentant process which sets him free. Why? By going over his past, good and bad, the bad, or wrong choices, were brought to light. All his mistakes or shortcomings in his life made him realize he did not want to repeat them. Haven’t we all been there? Of course we have. But, we need to admit it, repent of it, learn from the experience and freely move on with a new desire to please God.
“Train me well in your deep wisdom”… We all want to learn more, have more wisdom to be all that God wants us to be so we will behave in ways of wisdom that make God smile and bring him glory and praise!
HOW?
1. TAKE STOCK OFTEN, tell it to Jesus.
I am reminded of Romans !2:3, warning us, “Be honest in your estimate of yourselves, measuring your value by how much faith God has given you.” (NLT) The Message says, “…it’s important that you not misinterpret yourselves as people who are bringing this goodness to God. No, God brings it all to you.” In others words, we join God in HIS work, He does not join us. “The only accurate way to understand ourselves is by what God is and by what he does for us, not by what we are and what we do for him.” Romans 12, Msg Repent of those times when we have thought and behaved this way.
2. THINK like Jesus. Want what God wants…”Since Jesus went through everything you’re going through and more, learn to think like him. Think of your sufferings as a weaning from that old sinful habit of always expecting to get your own way. Then you’ll be able to live out your days free to pursue what God wants instead of being tyrannized by what you want.” 1 Peter 4, Msg Leave the bad, ask every morning, “Lord, what do you want today? Learn to think like Jesus.
3. PRACTICE wisdom in every opportunity. “Use your heads as you live and work among outsiders. Don’t miss a trick. Make the most of every opportunity. Be gracious in your speech. The goal is to bring out the best in others in a conversation, not put them down, not cut them out.” Colossians 4, Msg
4. PRAY…then pray more. “Pray diligently. Stay alert, with your eyes wide open in gratitude. Don’t forget to pray for us, that God will open doors for telling the mystery of Christ, even while I’m locked up in this jail. Pray that every time I open my mouth I’ll be able to make Christ plain as day to them.” Pray for yourself to proclaim His message. Pray for others to do the same not matter what the circumstance. Prayer leads to making wise choices, having wisdom, the skills for living this life with integrity.
5. NOTICE when God shows up. (Talking about Israel) Paul reminds the church, “They were absorbed in what they themselves were doing. They were so absorbed in their ‘God projects’ that they didn’t notice God right in front of them, like a huge rock in the middle of the road. And so they stumbled…” Romans 9, Msg Remember He is God and we are not.
6. TRUST God. For everything. For every detail of this life. “May Your Kingdom come, YOUR will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” “Trust and obey, for there’s no other way.” (Another old hymn of wisdom.)
Dear Heavenly Father, Continue to teach us your deep wisdom in all we are and do. We trust You. We believe in what You say. We know You love us. So, we love to follow your commands for we know You know what is best for us. We repent of those times we went our own way. Help us to be honest with ourselves and learn from our mistakes. Set us free to be all You created us to be.
In Jesus Name, Amen
Be honest. Grumpy is not just the name of a dwarf.
There is a very old story line that ends with “Sometimes I wake up grumpy and sometimes I let him sleep.” Did you wake up grumpy or even depressed today? The Psalmist did…
“I lie in the dust, completely discouraged; revive me by your word.” Psalm 119:25, NLT
Or in the Message version; “I’m feeling terrible–I couldn’t feel worse! Get me on my feet again. You promised, remember?”
Either way, the writer is relying on God’s Law, His Word to revive his soul, lift him up out of the dust of discouragement from whatever is happening that is challenging to him and is asking God to remember his promise to him to always be with him and to help him.
The Psalmist is honest. I love that. God wants us to be totally honest with Him when we talk with him. He sees and knows our hearts anyway, so why try to hide anything from the God who created us from the “dust of the earth”?
So, we wake up grumpy sometimes. Stumble over the covers of last night’s restlessness and pick up God’s Word that speaks abundant life back into our souls! God’s Word energizes us. His commands bring ah-ha moments to our minds as we search for the right decisions to make. His Holy Spirit overwhelms us with insight and understanding and fills us with peace and reminders of God’s unconditional love…as we read His Word!
Grumpy, still? Read more. Ask God for help. He will. He promised.
Dear Heavenly Father, THANK YOU for Your Word speaks life back into our tired and sometimes depressed souls. We cannot remain down in the dumps for very long for You lift us up with words of love, peace, joy, direction as well as showing us what we need to spruce up in our lives. We believe. We are open to Your transformation work in us. Thank you for caring enough, in spite of our grumpiness at times, to remain unchanged in Your love for us. And thank you for letting us be honest.
In Jesus Name, Amen
“Your statues are my delight; they are my counselors.”
Psalm 119:24, NIV
“Your decrees please me; they give me wise advice.”
Psalm 119:24, NLT
To be confused in the middle of life is the most frustrating part of my life. I want to know the answer! I’ve had several teachers along my educational career as a student who were arrogant at times, making you guess at the answers to their questions instead of guiding me to the answer. That is not good teaching.
As a teacher, we pose questions to make our students think, but then we are the impetus, the facilitator to guide them to the right answers. But there is a fine line in making them think and just frustrating them. That’s where wisdom and guidance come to the rescue. If students are left frustrated, then teaching did not take place.
God’s Word is not meant to keep us guessing at life. His Truth is clear, concise and meant to give Life. Frustration only comes when our will is in battle with His will and we don’t want to accept Truth. “We can’t handle the Truth!” (Movie, A Few Good Men quote) And…we don’t want to change.
His Word shows us how to love Him back. His Word is filled with His promises that He will be with us, will show us the way through dark times, will bring eternal peace, “not like the world gives” but a special peace that leads to joy in all circumstances, that He will give us a counselor, (His Holy Spirit) to convict, not condemn, and guide us to His will and purpose.
In other words…He readily gives the answers we are longing for about our life and purpose. His Word brings knowledge that is meant to transform us to be more and more like Him…so that our lives shine so brightly that others are attracted to His Light of hope through salvation. It is God’s Story of how he includes us IN His Story of reconciliation through Jesus Christ His Son (John 3:16). God is to be worshiped and praised, not His Word. His Word is be lived out in our daily walk as we are continually transformed by it! His Word is absolute Truth, written by God himself whether we choose to accept and believe it or not. It still stands as Truth.
Yes, I believe every word. I delight every morning to converse with God through his Word, commands and statues, not ashamed to come to His throne and have coffee with Him “in the garden, alone” of my heart and soul, as he tells me I am His own.
“And the joy we share as we tarry there, None other as ever known.”
Thank you, LORD, for Your Word to us, Your Holy Spirit that guides us as we read and convicts us to transform. Confusion disappears every time I go to Your Word for the Truth, because You are Truth. I believe.
In Jesus Name, Amen
“And he walks with me and he talks with me…”
