A recipe for living life

As I learn your righteous judgements, I will praise you with a pure heart. (verse 7)

Read Psalm 119:1-8

Do I want to live a blest life, or a life of shame? Am I going to live the kind of life that, when God and others look at it, shows blessings and wholeness? If that’s the life I want, then I need to have the word of God at the centre of my life. God’s word will actively and mysteriously colour my life, determine my actions towards others and my reactions to all that I encounter in my life. God’s word will be ‘a lamp to guide me and a light for my path’ (verse 105).

My approach to the word of God is in an attitude of praise, not an attitude of fear. Reading and hearing God’s word is not just a religious habit, either. An attitude of praise opens me up to be changed by the word. Hebrews 4:12 says,’ The word of God is alive and active, sharper than any double-edged sword. It cuts all the way through, to where soul and spirit meet, to where joints and marrow come together. It judges the desires and thoughts of the heart.’

Father, your word is a light to my day. Give me the courage to turn off all the noises of this world and to immerse myself in your word. Open my eyes to see where your Spirit is leading me. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.

by Glenda Kowald, in ‘Time Out…with Jesus’  (ACR, Australian Church Resources, 2013)