A GUIDEBOOK FOR THE AGES
Opening Prayer
On this Sabbath Day, Lord God, lead me into true rest and worship.
Read PSALM 119:97–112
For additional translations of the passage, use this link to Bible Gateway.
מ Mem
97 Oh, how I love your law!
I meditate on it all day long.
98 Your commands are always with me
and make me wiser than my enemies.
99 I have more insight than all my teachers,
for I meditate on your statutes.
100 I have more understanding than the elders,
for I obey your precepts.
101 I have kept my feet from every evil path
so that I might obey your word.
102 I have not departed from your laws,
for you yourself have taught me.
103 How sweet are your words to my taste,
sweeter than honey to my mouth!
104 I gain understanding from your precepts;
therefore I hate every wrong path.
נ Nun
105 Your word is a lamp for my feet,
a light on my path.
106 I have taken an oath and confirmed it,
that I will follow your righteous laws.
107 I have suffered much;
preserve my life, Lord, according to your word.
108 Accept, Lord, the willing praise of my mouth,
and teach me your laws.
109 Though I constantly take my life in my hands,
I will not forget your law.
110 The wicked have set a snare for me,
but I have not strayed from your precepts.
111 Your statutes are my heritage forever;
they are the joy of my heart.
112 My heart is set on keeping your decrees
to the very end.[a]
Footnotes
- Psalm 119:112 Or decrees / for their enduring reward
New International Version (NIV)Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Reflect
Bring to mind a significant decision you have made lately. In what ways did you seek God’s will and how did he speak to you?Yesterday evening I went for a night walk with my daughter. Most of our route was lit by streetlights, but for a short stretch we were in pitch darkness. I couldn’t even see my own feet. It would have been easy to trip, take a wrong turn, or step on our black cat who had come along for the walk.
Isaiah referred to ‘people walking in darkness’ (9:2), by which he meant those who lived beyond God’s blazing light of love and life. Much later, John’s gospel identifies Jesus as ‘the light of all mankind’ (1:4), and Paul, in his letter to the Galatians, urged people to be led by the Spirit (5:25). Here in Psalm 119, another central means of God’s guidance to us is celebrated: his Word, the Bible. The light it shines on our path is wisdom, insight, and understanding (vv. 98–100) and the ability to discern between good and evil behavior (vv. 101, 104).
There is absolutely no need for us to stumble around trying to figure out the way ahead. If we meditate on, memorize, and practice what we read in God’s Word, we have all we need to set our course in a godly direction.
Apply
What spiritual habit do you need to better cultivate to walk with God closely and without stumbling?
Closing prayer
Thank you for your promise, Lord Jesus, that in you, I will never walk in darkness. Loving Father, thank you for your Word that provides me with everything I need in my journey of faith. Holy Spirit, I am grateful for the counsel you offer me each day.
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