April 8, 2020

Hello Everyone,

I pray that all of you are well this passion week. Please be in prayer for Janice Taormina. She fell and broke her shoulder in two places. She has a doctor’s appointment today and is in a lot of pain. Also continue to remember the rest of our church family in your prayers. On another note, I hope some of you have had time to study the Gospel of John in the DM2 webinar. The variety of teachers has been great and focus on the life of Christ is something we need consistently to maintain the proper perspective. That Biblical perspective provides the change of thinking we need for faith obedience from a heart devoted to the Lord.

In verse 36, the Psalmist’s request shifts desire for God to turn his attention more to the things of the Lord. The request comes from the Hebrew word NATAH which means “to cause, to bend, or win over.” Simply, the Psalmist wants God to cause his heart to bend toward the ‘EDUT meaning “statute or regulation.” Important to note that the word ‘EDUT is another word for the Mosaic Law used over twenty times in Psalm 119. The word emphasizes the covenant relationship between God and Israel serving to remind the Psalmist of God’s past actions.

Focusing on the heart, which is viewed as the core of one’ life, indicates the Psalmist wants a heart devoted to the standards of God. God desires a devoted heart for each of us. Consequently, the Psalmist’s desires match the desires of God (Mark 12:29-31). Furthermore, a heart devoted to the Lord provides the basis for faith obedience which relates to the Psalmist’s reason for the request. The author wants God to keep motivating him in the direction of the Word of God and not toward ill-gotten gain. The command to not covet must be followed. The motivation from a devoted heart to serve God provides the ability to say no to dishonest gain.

Like the Psalmist, we need to recognize our dependence upon the Lord to change our heart (the core of our thinking). Such renovation can only be done by the Word of God through the ministry of the Holy Spirit (Romans 12:2). Since God desires our heart, He sometimes allows attention arresting tests to remind us of our dependence upon Him. God works His plan through us for His glory. The greater the devotion of our heart, the greater the glory brought to our Savior and Heavenly Father. Let us keep the proper perspective so God will be glorified through us.

Pressing on in Christ,

Clay