Prescription

Psalm 119:9-16

Beth.

      9 How can a young man keep his way pure?

      By keeping it according to Your word.

      10 With all my heart I have sought You;

      Do not let me wander from Your commandments.

      11 Your word I have treasured in my heart,

      That I may not sin against You.

      12 Blessed are You, O LORD;

      Teach me Your statutes.

      13 With my lips I have told of

      All the ordinances of Your mouth.

      14 I have rejoiced in the way of Your testimonies,

      As much as in all riches.

      15 I will meditate on Your precepts

      And regard Your ways.

      16 I shall delight in Your statutes;

      I shall not forget Your word.

Examine / Explain

I see a man who began to internalize God’s prescriptions for life as a boy. He learned that practicing what God has commanded of us is the way we train our hearts to treasure what He has said. And yet, when we lay off the training, we can drift away. We will start to willfully sin against the Most High God. Full is a life because of the portion God has given. At the edge of me is my mouth. It makes known the measure which you have spoken over us. Men must pause and think before action. We are to consider the boundaries He has given us, we are to consider the pathways of righteousness. I will rejoice over your protection and must remind myself about the things you have spoken.

How do I apply this to my life?

Am I joyful about the boundaries God has placed in my life? Do I stop and think about what actions I am doing? How am I sinning against God? Do I even realize the things I do? Where is my treasure? Is it in my inner man? Is the overflow of my inner self coming out the edge of me, my lips?  Do I listen to what God has said? Do I head the prescriptions for my life? What do I delight in? What have I forgotten? Am I a man adrift without direction? Or am I at least paddling toward a purpose and goal? To proclaim the good news. Life is distracting. We can get caught up in any aspect of it and lose the littlest focus. That can send us teetering off the rails. Do I remember the ways when I first believed? Do I still have that zeal of a new believer? Have other believers jaded me and allowed me to become cynical? What does it matter? That is proof that life is distracting. My focus and goal in life is Jesus first. The rest will fall in line. Where am I not putting Him first?

What is my response?

Father, train me to put Jesus first in all things of my life. The way I lead other men, protect my wife and direct my children. Help me catch lessons the first time around. Teach me to hide Your words in my innermost being so that I might not sin against You. I know that is not a guarantee, but it’s a love for my savior that I at least try. I want my relationships to be better. I want to commune with you more. I want more relational equity with other men. I want an even deeper relationship with my wife. And I want my example to land on grandchildren. I’m not looking for perfect, but I want to step up my game at least a little more today than yesterday and a little more tomorrow than today. Amen.