I won’t dissect the passage--I think reading the psalm is better than me explaining it:). But I will share some lessons from it.
First, it highlights the fact that really living for Christ every day is so contradictory to our world—and what we often say even as Christians. This passage says that if we walk with God daily—seek him with all of our hearts; meditate on His word; focus on Him and praise Him—we can live upright and avoid sin. We say we’re only human, it’s impossible to follow God’s ways completely and we should just go after whatever makes us happy at the moment rather than seek what He has for us.
But again, the psalmist sees true life in following God’s commands. He gets excited—“rejoices… delights” (v. 14; 16) in God’s model for righteousness. And he prays that as he seeks God with all of his heart, God keeps him from stumbling. He is relentless in his pursuit of life with God and trusts God to give him the strength to choose it consistently (v. 5-8). This passage is such an example for us!
Second, it makes me think about my walk. Recently I’ve been pondering my limits. There’s so much I want to accomplish—so many things I want to be to others and myself—but I fall short of those goals. I want to be totally loving and forgiving always—but I’m not always. I want to do my very best at work all the time, for His glory—but at times I don’t. I want to support like, all these causes—but I can’t do everything.
But the “I” is the problem. Living an upright life requires going to The Source daily. And it begins with deciding there is nothing greater in this life than what God has planned for me. Once I make that choice, I am able to live uprightly, correct myself when I stray (and stray less), focus less on my limits and see Him accomplish His plan in my life. That is one reason daily time in God’s Word, as the psalm also underscores, is so important: it gives us constant direction!
This month I’ve made a commitment to seek God daily in a particular quiet place—a special place in nature where I love talking to God. For some reason going there and sitting on a hand-crafted wood bench, listening to the birds chirp, crickets buzz and looking at the tall deciduous trees covering the sky above me—and the air around me—make me think of both the vastness of His splendor and the nearness of His presence. And when I feel that free, I talk to Him so openly, hear Him speak clearly and feel the peace only He can dole.
He's teaching me things. Right now it's how to surrender my desires completely to Him. Yeah, it’s one of those ongoing lessons:). He’s also showing me the beauty of His forgiveness—how it gives me the freedom to keep moving after I sin when I would have been inclined to shrink back in guilt. In a couple words, I’m growing!
Jesus said in John 10:10 that He came for us to have life--and have it “more abundantly,” or, “to the full.” That doesn’t just mean having eternal life by praying the “Sinner’s Prayer” for salvation, but also being full every day after that decision. And when we daily walk uprightly as the psalmist describes, we tap into that abundant life that He has for us. Yes, God isn’t here to meet our expectations, but when we seek Him, He can specialize in blowing our minds. That’s yet another reason to choose Him every day!
There’s an (old) hymn that comes to mind, “Just a Closer Walk with Thee.” I really like the chorus:
Just a closer walk with Thee,
Grant it, Jesus, is my plea,
Daily walking close to Thee,
Let it be, dear Lord, let it be.
That’s basically the psalmist’s prayer in Psalm 119. And I pray it’s yours, too.
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