the final word on how

In the past several blogs I have been addressing the HOW of the question HOW does God accomplish His goals and purposes in our lives as we walk through difficult times.

We have already seen the answer from the New Testament and observed an example from the Old.  I now want us to go to Psalm 119, which is the longest psalm of the Bible.

The subject matter of Psalm 119 is the Word of God, but not just that.  It is a collection of poignant statements of truth about HOW the Word of God accomplishes the purposes of God when it is obeyed and practiced.

I will offer several examples, but the entirety of the psalm is worth reading with these two truths in mind.

• THE SUFFICIENT, EXHAUSTIVE, COMPLETE TREASURY OF WISDOM CONCERNING THE SPIRIT AND SOUL IS THE WORD OF GOD.
• WE ARE TRANSFORMED BY THE HOLY SPIRIT THROUGH THE DISCIPLINE OF OBEYING AND APPLYING THE WORD TO OUR LIVES.

Now see these truths for yourself from Psalm 119.

• How can we have our life cleansed of destructive patterns?

Psalm 119:9 NKJV   How can a young man cleanse his way? By taking heed according to Your word. 

​A person cannot cleanse his way of life without the instruction of the Word of God, but just hearing the instruction is not enough.  We must hear and do.  We must heed the Word!

• Where can we receive trustworthy counsel that we know will be right?

Psalm 119:24 NKJV   Your testimonies also are my delight And my counselors. 

The Word of God has the counsel we need.  But it will only help us as we delight in its counsel and do it.

• How can we grow wise in dealing with life's problems and issues?

Psalm 119:98-100 NKJV   You, through Your commandments, make me wiser than my enemies; For they are ever with me. I have more understanding than all my teachers, For Your testimonies are my meditation. I understand more than the ancients, Because I keep Your precepts. 

It is the truth of God´s commandments that offer wisdom, but we must make them a part of our lives.  The way to do that is to meditate upon God´s Word so that it pops in our mind the very moment we need it.  Then when we recall it, we keep it.  That is the way change is accomplished.

My friend, knowing and doing this is what will allow us to walk through times of trial with success.  This is what will enable us to come to the end of a period of great difficulty and see God´s purposes accomplished and His goals fulfilled in each of our lives.

Is that what you want to happen as a consequence of this pandemic in your own life?

I do.

I do!

To that end, I am going to at least begin to walk us through Psalm 119.  The psalm is written in twenty two sections, each section being eight verses long.  If you could read Hebrew, you would see that each verse in a particular section begins with the same letter.

So, the first eight verses of Psalm 119 each begin with the first letter of the Hebrew alphabet – Aleph.  This is where we will start tomorrow.  Psalm 119:1-8.

Each day, we will read the Treasury of Wisdom, meditate upon it, and see how to apply it directly into our lives.

EMAIL BRO. MIKE