I Blew It!

Well, I did it.  I blew it.  I missed spending time in the Word of God twice this week.  Any why?  Because I was writing.  I chose to spend time enjoying one of God’s gifts, and writing is something I definitely view as one of God’s most precious gifts to me, instead of spending time with HIM.  When God blesses us with a particular love of something we must be very careful NOT to allow it to usurp Him, His place in our hearts and spending time with Him.  More importantly, we must be careful not to let the gift get in the way of loving the Giver.  Spending regular time in God’s Word is one way we let our God know how much we love Him.

But how should we approach our time with Him?  Is it drudgery or does it inspire delight?  David, once again in Psalm 119, gives us insight (over and over again) to how our time studying God’s Word should be approached.  He says:

• Verse 14:  “I rejoice in following your statues as one rejoices in great riches.”
• Verse 16:  “I delight in your decrees; I will not neglect your word.”
• Verse 18:  “Open my eyes that I may see wonderful things in your law.”
• Verse 20:  “My soul is consumed with longing for your laws at all times.”
• Verse 24:  “Your statutes are my delight; they are my counselors.”
• Verse 32:  “I run in the path of your commands, for you have set my heart free.”
• Verse 45:  “I will walk about in freedom for I have sought out your precepts.”
• Verse 47:  “…I delight in your commands because I love them.”
• Verse 48:  “I lift my hands to your commands, which I love, and I meditate on your decrees.”
• Verse 54:  “Your decrees are the theme of my song…”
• Verse 70:  “…I delight in your law.”
• Verse 71:  “The law from your mouth is more precious to me than thousands of pieces of silver and gold.”
• Verse 97:  “O how I love your law!  I meditate on it all day long.”
• Verse 103:  “How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth.”

David’s admonition to us in this Psalm is this:  enjoy your God.  Relish spending time in His Word.  If you miss a day, don’t beat yourself up with the duty you failed to live up to; instead, dig in with renewed vigor to enjoy your God and to delight in Him and His Words to you the next time you have a moment to sit awhile and learn at His feet.  We spend time DOING what we love.  I did.  I love writing.  I spent time writing.  I proved what I love by doing what I love.  Instead of loving my God the way I should, I loved his gift more than I loved Him.  I blew it.

Lord, teach me to love YOU more than I love your gifts.  Help me to delight in your Word more than I delight in mere words.  Show me how to love you with my whole heart, soul, mind and strength.  Amen.