A Response to Psalm 119

I really felt lead to read the 119 Psalm today. As I read it aloud, the words began to resonate deep within me. I cried out to God, as if David’s words were my own. When I finished, I wrote out my thoughts. The words flowed quickly, and though imperfect, they are a reflection of my experience in the scripture. I hope you enjoy it.

A response to Psalm 119:

God’s commandments are shelter from the storm, and an invitation into his presence. They are life infusing, enemy defeating, grace imparting, words of love and warning. They are safety for the journey, comfort for the oppressed, and hope for the hopeless. They are impossible to master, and easy to obey. They are life, a testament to his love, and a reminder of the cross. They purchase for us nothing – only the blood of Jesus can pay our ransom – still, they keep us close to God, near to El Shaddai. They guard us and guide us, preserve us, and in keeping them remind us that the Spirit’s work is not done on the earth. They are our weapons and they pierce us. They are our crown and they reduce us to nothing. They keep us in right balance, and afford the soul perfect peace. They radiate the love of God, and in them his face is seen clearly. They provoke fear and trembling in the believer, and security to the soul, like a man observing a fierce storm from the shelter of his porch.  They are life and light and love. They are the greatest achievement of a believer, and –understood rightly- they give glory only to God, praise only to his name, credit to his grace alone, and birth compassion in the heart of him that keeps them. They are a light- illuminating both the depravity of a man’s heart and the glories of God’s inexhaustible mercy. God is love, and they that keep his commandments, that follow his precepts, will love deeper, and more honestly than ever before. By them we rejoice in affliction, invite rebuke, and endure trials. We are aware of his goodness, afraid of his holiness, and implicitly trust in his heart. We must wash ourselves daily in his commandments, because our old nature, still fighting for dominance, is wicked, and does not love the law of God. Yet, this daily immersion is a gift unto itself. It is time in communion with the Spirit of God; time with our Father. Teach me to love your laws, oh God. Teach me to yearn for your statutes, to cling to them as unto life, and to love them as a man loves his wife. Your word is true, your precepts are just, and your law leads me through death into new life.

~Brendan Smith