Today's Scripture: Psalm 119:9-16
"How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to your word."
To successfully navigate life, we need to know where we're going and the best way to get there.
In today's passage, The Psalmist reminds us that we should look to God to set the course of our life. Notice that he says, "By guarding it according to your word" (emphasis added). It paints a picture of one who is constantly evaluating life choices and decisions against the word of God.
It's not that he decides where he wants to go or what he wants to do, and then uses the Bible as a "guide book of life" kind of thing. Instead, he trusts God to set his course, to determine where to go or what to do, and which direction to go.
This is reinforced throughout the passage. Notice some of the phrases … I seek you, let me not wander … Teach me your statutes … In the way of your testimonies … fix my eyes on your ways … I will not forget your word.
In every verse, the Psalmist looks to the Lord for direction, not himself.
Is there anything to be gained by turning over the navigation for your life to the Lord?
Absolutely there is … a pure life before God. How can I live a pure life? By living according to God's word, he says.
Compare this with Proverbs 20:6, where Scripture says, "Who can say, 'I have made my heart pure; I am clean from my sin?'" The expected answer is, no one can.
Since Creation, man has tried to go out on his own, to set his own course. The result for everyone, 100 percent of the time, is a broken relationship with the God who created you. The only way to have that relationship restored is through the Word of God, Jesus Christ.
That's the destination God would set for you. A restored, eternal relationship with himself. The course he has set for you is to follow Jesus in faith and in the keeping of his word.
Think about it …
On a scale of 1 to 5, with 1 being the least pure and 5 being the most pure, how pure before God would you say your life is right now?
If you answered anything other than a 5, how can you begin to move more toward a pure life before God?
Is there someone you know that might need some encouragement guarding their way according to the word of the Lord?
