Delight in the Word

"If Your law had not been my delight, then I would have perished in my affliction."  Ps. 119:92

No doubt this verse shows that God's word upholds us.. protects us.. etc. during difficult times, but I also see a daily application.  if I delight in something, I will make time for it.  So if I delight in His Word, I'll be in it .. daily.. reading, studying, meditating, memorizing.

Doing this daily, even when life is going good, builds that foundation.. that fortification.. for when the tough stuff happens (and it will happen!) and it is easier to delight and dig in when life is going smooth.

Trails, testings, etc are to build and strengthen our faith.

I believe "smooth" sailings are to build our faith's foundation.. our footing as it were.. to sharpen our swords... to condition  ourselves.. to make ready for what is to come.

That "smooth" sailing is our study time and those trials our exams. We can't really cram because we rarely see the exam coming.. they are more like pop quizzes! And I, for one, want to pass... so I need to be in the Word daily!

I am praying for a heart that delights in the Word... praying that Jeremiah 15:16 would be true in my life...

Your Words were found and I ate them. 

They were a joy to me and the delight of my heart 

for I am called by Your Name, O Lord.

Testings

I have always loved Genesis 22 -- God's call to Abraham to sacrifice Isaac.  What obedience! What Faith!

I am using The Daily Walk Bible to read through the Scripture this year and each day has a short devotional thought with it. The one for this particular passage caused me to ponder this passage in light of my own life.

Verse 1 of Chapter 22 says "Sometime later God tested Abraham"... the comments are made in the devo that Abraham had already been through a lot of faith-stretching circumstances which were evidently preparing him for this, his biggest test.

And then these questions are asked... "Are you learning lessons today that will help you handle the tests God has for you tomorrow? Think of one faith-stretching situation you are facing today. How might God use it to prepare you for tomorrow? Ask Him to make you teachable in today's tests so you'll be prepared for the bigger ones tomorrow."

Great questions to ponder... great way to apply this to our own lives.

Psalm 26 & 27

from September 17, 2008

Psalm 26 is a bit difficult for me. David is telling God why He should vindicate him... how he (David) is blameless.. has unwavering trust in the Lord.. avoids evil... etc.

Now I'm not doubting David or saying he is a liar, but I cannot claim to be blameless.. to have unwavering trust etc. So for me, this Psalms is a list of things I want to be, but because of my humanness I can't. But I can pray these verses and ask God to strengthen my trust that it might not waver... to help me avoid evil... to praise Him that through the blood of Jesus I am blameless.

The scariest verse to me is verse 2 "Test me, O Lord, and try me, examine my heart and my mind." It takes courage and fortitude to pray that and mean it, but WOW the growth that comes from a time of testing is priceless.

Psalm 27 is an old friend. I struggled with a stronghold of fear for a number of years and Psalm 27:1 was one of my "fear" verses. I clung to these verses, praying them over and over.

Ps. 27:1 "The Lord is my light and my salvation, whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life, of whom shall I be afraid?"

Today as I read, I was struck by 2 verses.. the end of verse 4 "to gave upon the beauty of the Lord and to seek Him in His temple" and verse 8 "My heart says of You, 'seek His face!' Your face, Lord, I will seek."

Jer. 29:13 assures us that when we seek the Lord, he will be found.

These verses contain a great goal...the ultimate goal for a believer... to seek God, to seek that deep personal intimate relationship with Him. What more could we want or need?