MONDAY 24th
Psalm 119:9-16 (ESV) – Section Two – Hebrew – BETH
‘How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to your word. With my whole heart I seek you; let me not wander from your commandments!
I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you. Blessed are you, O LORD; teach me your statutes! With my lips I declare all the rules of your mouth. In the way of your testimonies I delight as much as in all riches.
I will meditate on your precepts and fix my eyes on your ways. I will delight in your statutes; I will not forget your word.’
I mentioned a few devotions earlier about the young girl who had sought to memorize Psalm119, I wonder how many times we have sought to memorize portions of Scripture? I remember having to learn the section in Luke 10 on the parable of the Good Samaritan, (vv25-37) I did manage it, but would fail miserably if I tried to recite it now, I have made other attempts, I recall a time when I was reading through the Ephesian epistle multiple times with the hope of memorising it, but I failed. But even though I may not be able to recall word for word, something happened in that the Word of God has become hidden or as this psalm says, ‘stored up in my heart’ and time and time again, I have found that while preparing ministry, or devotions, or in conversation, the Word that has been stored in my heart comes to memory and can be used and quoted.
From our verses today we discover that the Word that has been read, meditated upon, or maybe memorised, becomes like a guard in our hearts and lives and helps to govern the way that we live, it helps to stop us from sinning against God, it governs our conscience and triggers spiritual awareness.
This is one of the reasons why our regular reading of the Word of God is important and essential to our Christian growth and maturity, for God speaks to us through it, he reveals his will to us through it and he shows us exactly how he wants us to be as his Children as we live in obedience to him.
Through these devotions around this psalm my prayer is that we will have a greater love for the Word of God, so that as we turn to it, perhaps more frequently to what we have been doing so, that we may find it being stored in our hearts.
Some animals, creatures spend the summer and autumn months storing food so that they can return to it in the winter months to have as a food source, to replenish and give energy, to keep them going till springtime appears again.
I have witnessed time and time again, with older Christians, those who have stored up the Word of God in their hearts, and when the winter of their life has come, perhaps they can no longer read etc. and what has been stored comes back to them, and they can quote it because they have lived by it. The stored Word gives them spiritual energy. May none of us be lacking in our later years because we have failed to store up in our earlier years the life and energy that is to be found in God’s Word.