A Life Worthy

Teach me your way, O Lord; lead me in a straight path because of my oppressors (Psalm 27:11).

Sounds a little mercenary, if you ask me.

Sounds like David wants to follow God in order to avoid getting smacked by the bad guys, not just because he loves God. 

Does that bother you?

Beloved, I wish all my motives were pure. I wish I went to work solely for the joy of teaching children and helping them to grow strong and wise and capable.

But I also go for the paycheck.

I wish I obeyed traffic laws simply because it is the right and safe and good thing to do.

But I also want to avoid a ticket.

I wish I had accepted Christ only because of his goodness and love and mercy.

But, yeah, escaping eternal death was in the mix, too.

This world is a minefield. You need help navigating it if you want to avoid a spiritual boom. So, yes, we follow Christ in part because it gets us through the day with body and soul intact. But we also follow him because he is worth following. He is the One worthy of our life, our soul, our all.

The only One.

Our motives are mixed, Beloved. They always will be, as long as we’re in this world and in this flesh. But that’s OK. He knows, and he loves, and he waits for the day when we will be purely, wholly, completely his.

Me too.

Happy Tuesday, Beloved.

Though my father and mother forsake me, the Lord will receive me  (Psalm 27:10).

You know, I just can’t imagine my mom turning me away. I can’t conceive of a situation in which I would have gone to her, lost and desperate for help, to hear her say “Meh. I don’t think so.” For one thing, she never in her life said, “Meh.” For another, she loved me. I was her son, to whom she devoted much of her life. There’s no way I can picture my mother turning her back on me and leaving me in the cold.

But she would before God would.

My friend, his love for you, his commitment to you, goes beyond anything you can dream of.

And you know, maybe you can imagine the above scenario. Perhaps it is your rotten lot to have parents who have forsaken you, in small ways or big. This world and its people are broken, after all.  These things happen.

This verse is for you as well, Beloved. Though every other relationship in your life should falter, though every other person proves to be a dandruff-ridden louse, you can know that the Lord of Everything has got your back. He will never abandon you, never forsake you, never fail to take you into his arms and heart.

How could he?

He is God

and

you are his Beloved.

Happy Friday

My heart says of you, “Seek his face!” Your face, Lord, I will seek (Psalm 27:8).

It’s simple, really.

Your heart knows.

Be careful, Beloved. I don’t think David is talking about his emotions when he talks about his heart. We all know that trusting and following our emotions can bring on a whole world of pain and embarrassment and regret.

I mean, I remember a time when…

never mind.

But the heart is deeper than that. You’ve gotta get past the emotions that throw you around like the proverbial storm-tossed ship. You have to move beyond all the turmoil to get to the still place, the quiet place, the place where life becomes very simple indeed:

Know God.

Seek his face.

Remember who he is.

In this Psalm, David was under attack, and there was no simple way to fight back. His response, and his advice to us today…

seek his face.

Shall we?

Happy Wednesday, Beloved.

Then my head will be exalted above the enemies who surround me; at his tabernacle will I sacrifice with shouts of joy; I will sing and make music to the Lord (Psalm 27:6).

Sing

Sing a song

Sing out loud

Sing out…

Sorry.

Are you feeling all ‘70s, now?

Sorry again.

You know, there’s wisdom in that little ditty from the land of bell-bottoms and grooviosity. That Sesame Street advice is spot-on.

Sing your song.

Don’t worry that it’s not good enough for anyone else to hear, just sing…

God has saved you from unimaginable yuck, my friend, and he’s just getting started. Sing his praises today, loud and long, in any combination of keys you can manage. He’s worth it, ya?

Happy Monday, Beloved.