This past December, I lost my job. It was a challenging time, but over these past five months, I have seen the Lord provide. It has helped me meditate on the reality of the gospel. Because of our sin, we have all strayed and are lost. Yet, the story of Scripture is the story of a God who provides. In His steadfast love, God sent Jesus Christ to live a life we did not and die on a death we could not so that when He rose from the grave, we could be reconciled to God and saved from our sins. In a way, Psalm 119:41 sums this beautiful truth up because, “Let your steadfast love come to me, O LORD, your salvation according to your promise” is what happened in the incarnation of Christ. Salvation was promised by God, and this God is trustworthy in His character. The enemies of sin, death, and Satan are defeated by Christ, so that no matter what we may face, we can trust His Word. In our sinfulness and brokenness, we may struggle to remember God’s promises. That is why we must cry out to God for us continually have His Word before us. We cannot stop there, though. As His Word is before us, we need to be putting His word before others. This includes being a witness both in word and action. As Jesus has come to us and called us to come to Him, may we pray and share with others of the steadfast love of the Lord so that they may receive the salvation that comes from God through the promise of the gospel.

Reflection Questions:

How do the promises of God bring encouragement during challenging times in life?

Who can you share the steadfast love of the Lord with this week?

One of the questions my wife and I tend to ask each other often is, “What is the Lord teaching you?” We do this for accountability but also because we know the most important relationship in our lives is not first with each other, but with our God. Our relationship with God is not receiving disconnected information but hearing and heeding teaching from our relational God. Psalm 119:33-40 shows us this. It shows us that one of the reasons the Lord teaches us His Word is so we may keep it (verses 33-34). The Bible is not man’s revelation of God, but God’s revelation of Himself to man. Therefore, He is the one leading us and we are following (verse 35). Learning from the Lord begins by understanding Him and what He says in His Word. Yet, this is not merely information for the intellect. Learning from the Lord goes deeper and transforms the heart. It is not checking off a list but checking our hearts to see where our delights are. Where do we look for rest? Where do we look for relief? Where do we look for peace? Our eyes will be indicators of our hearts of what we are hoping in. What God’s Word gives to us, though, is the answer that He is the teacher for life and He is the Lord of life. He confirms His promise most clearly in Jesus Christ, His life, death, and resurrection for our salvation. Our response of repentance of sin and trust in Jesus as Savior and Lord is evidence we fear Him, which shows we have listened to Him as teacher. As our hearts are transformed, we continually grow into the image of Christ, fighting the battle where we turn away from sin and long for God. Longing for God is proof we are learning from Him.

Reflection Questions

Where have you looked to something other than Christ for hope recently? 

How would you answer the question, “What is the Lord teaching you?”

The longer I have lived, the more I recognize daily reliance on the Lord. Things I once took for granted, I realize are gifts from the Lord, even every single breath we take. The psalmist of Psalm 119 gets this and responds to this truth by crying out to God. He knows he is but dust and is clinging to the dust (verse 25a). In other words, he knows he is in need for his life and the only place that truly gives life is from God’s Word (verse 25b). As he comes in dependence to God, the Lord answers Him. Yet, as we can resonate, this dependence is not a one-time event but continual need for our lives. The patience we need in our parenting. The mercy we need for our marriages. The satisfaction we need in the Lord during our singleness. We need to meditate on the truth of God’s Word and come to Him in daily dependence. In the hard seasons of sorrow, we may feel weak and life may feel fleeting. But God’s Word in those times can strengthen us (verse 28). However, in the trials of life, we can be tempted to buy into the lies that God is not coming through on His promises or that He is not who He says He is. That is why we need to come back to the Word. He invites us to question, but by bringing those questions to Him, not questioning about Him to others. He is gracious toward us. That is why Jesus came to live a sinless life, die a sacrificial death, and rise again. Because of God’s grace! It is because of His grace, we can choose faithfulness, we can cling to His Word, and we will run to His commandments, not away from them. We look to God and His Word for life.

Reflection Questions:

When have you clung to the dust of life rather than to the testimonies of the Author of life?

What area of life do you need to be more intentionally depending on God?