Psalm 19 – BradRiley.Org

“The statutes of the Lord are just
and rejoice the heart;
the commandment of the Lord is clear
and gives light to the eyes… By them also is your servant enlightened, *
and in keeping them there is great reward.”

Palm 19:8,11

Read Psalm 19

springs-of-joy-music-group Many people walk through life with heavy hearts. Some are heavy because of sadness or grief, some because of consequence. To some people Lent seems a time for sadness. They dwell upon their sin and sing “woe is me”. They think that in their sadness the Lord is pleased. While it is true that we should be sorrowful for our sins, it’s not true that we should dwell in that sorrow.

Lent comes in the Spring of the year for a purpose. God wants to remind us there is always new life waiting to spring up within us. Repentance should always produce joy, and it is that joy that should be our dwelling place, for joy comes from the Lord.

The Psalmist reminds us that God’s ways are not weary or hard. His laws are not boring or meant to keep us from enjoying life. In fact, God’s laws are the very source of our joy. When we learn to listen to the Lord and obey His teachings, he leads us in paths of refreshing. He renews our hearts.

Are you struggling to keep God’s commandments? Do they seem burdensome to you? Perhaps it’s because you don’t really understand them. Scripture says there is a way that seems right to man, but leads to destruction (Proverbs 14:12). Sometimes we see those who live in open sin and they seem to have everything, even joy. But, what they have is a fleeting moment of euphoria, not true joy. The consequences of their sin catch up to them sooner or later, and there is no real peace in their lives. Like the addict who feels serenity for the brief moments of a high, they soon come crashing down to a state worse than before.

Everything God asks us to do is always for our own good. Christians should be the happiest people on earth. We are always faced with choices of good and evil but they rarely look so stark. Evil is disguised in many ways to look good. If sin wasn’t fun, in some measure, Satan wouldn’t be able to entice us into it. But, to do the right thing always brings a feeling of peace and joy, a joy that comes from the Holy Spirit who confirms the right choices within us.

As you look around you at the signs of Spring, may you see the signs of God’s love and forgiveness washing over you in this Lenten season. Meditate on His statutes, and He will renew your heart with springs of joy.

Shalom,

Pastor Brad

My daily Lenten prayer – “Restore to me the joy of your salvation,
and sustain in me a willing spirit. ” NRSV

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14 Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my rock and my redeemer.

Psalm 19:14

The sign on the door said “Quiet Prayer Only”. I’d been in many chapels but never one that didn’t allow any talking. I was intrigued so I opened the door. Inside I found a room with glass walls on three sides and large stone at the center of the room. It wasn’t just a rock it was a boulder. The stone was almost as tall as me and at least five feet around. Around the room the glass walls were lined with chairs, kneeling benches and some pads for lying prostrate in prayer.

The chapel is at the Spiritual Life Center. The Center is owned by the Catholic Diocese of Wichita and is open for all to use for everything from seminars to retreats. I was there on a weekend men’s retreat our church was holding.

I wasn’t in great need of a place to unburden myself in prayer; I was just exploring the building. Once inside the chapel, I sat down to look around and take in the beauty and majesty of being in such a sublime place. My mind and my heart began to dwell on the words of Psalm 19. As I stared at that boulder I could see in it, “Jesus, my rock and my redeemer.”

The Psalmist tells us that the heavens declare the glory of God, that day and night pour forth the voice of God without needing words (v 2-3). Growing up with a Catholic background in my youth, I was familiar with the spiritual discipline of meditation. However, in my years with the Church of the Nazarene, I must admit that I lost the call to such times of meditation, but there in that quiet place it all came flooding back. The gift of Christian meditation is for all believers; scripture calls us to it.

The windowed walls look out at the beautiful grounds surrounding the Center. There is a view of a lake with a fountain in the middle, and many trees and birds. It’s really quite serene. The stone boulder in the middle of the chapel had a small bronze tabernacle sitting atop it. Beside the tabernacle was a lighted lamp, and inside the tabernacle was the Eucharistic bread, also known as the Host. In Catholic theology to be in the presence of a consecrated Host is to be in the transubstantiated presence of Christ.

I thought I was dropping in for a moment. However, the moments turned into minutes, and the minutes turned into an hour. I was lost in the words of the Psalmist:

3 There is no speech, nor are there words; their voice is not heard;

4 yet their voice goes out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. In them he has set a tent for the sun… 7 The law of the LORD is perfect, reviving the soul; the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple;

Have you heard the voice – the voice of God in creation? It is as the Psalmist says, “sweeter also than honey and drippings of the honeycomb.”

In the chapel that day there were no words from my mouth, but the meditation of my heart was pleasing to my soul, and I pray it was pleasing to my rock and my redeemer as well. As I write this devotion the words of a song by Norah Jones comes to my mind, “Come Away with Me”. Listen to the words. I don’t know who Norah was thinking of when she wrote this popular love song, but I’m hearing the words of my rock and my redeemer calling me to come away with Him, to meditate on Him and His love for me. Won’t you come away too?

Come away with me in the night
Come away with me
And I will write you a song

Come away with me on a bus
Come away where they can’t tempt us, with their lies

And I want to walk with you
On a cloudy day
In fields where the yellow grass grows knee-high
So won’t you try to come

Come away with me and we’ll kiss
On a mountaintop
Come away with me
And I’ll never stop loving you

Shalom,

Pastor Brad

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Tag: Psalm 19

Springs of Joy

Come Away with Me