Breathe on me

Psalm 119:73-80 (NLT)  "You made me; you created me.  Now give me the sense to follow your commands.  May all who fear you find in me a cause for joy, for I have put my hope in your word.  I know, O Lord, that your regulations are fair; you disciplined me because I needed it.  Now let your unfailing love comfort me, just as you promised me, your servant.  Surround me with your tender mercies so I may live, for your instructions are my delight.  Bring disgrace upon the arrogant people who lied about me; meanwhile, I will concentrate on your commandments.  Let me be united with all who fear you, with those who know your laws.  May I be blameless in keeping your decrees; then I will never be ashamed."

Our passage today deals with the heart of a seeker - David comes to God over and over in this Psalm, asking God for a greater revelation of who God is.  In the passage before us, David acknowledges that it is God who has made him - with his very own hands he has created him - and now he needs God to breathe his wisdom over him so he can understand him even better.  God-breathed wisdom is something we all need in order to increase our revelation of God, his character, his presence, and his activity around and in each of us. 

The climate of heart that gains this type of wisdom is that of a heart that is waiting, expecting God's Word to come in due season, according to his will for our lives.  In waiting, we are made strong in our faith - it is in those quiet moments that God can breathe upon us by his Holy Spirit, opening us up to truths that will build us up and help us to walk straight. 

I am probably a little like David in that I have had to admit to God, "Now I see that your decisions are right!"  It is after much bumbling around on my own, in my own efforts tyring to work things out, that I come to the place that I quiet myself and wait for God to breathe his wisdom into the situation at hand.  In that quietness of spirit, God's direction begins to become clear.  My path becomes evident before me and I am able to step out in a fresh assurance that God has planned and orchestrated each step I take.  I still have to ask - why did it take all that bumbling around on my own?  Why did I have to fail in my own abilities in order to reach out to God for his God-breathed wisdom?

Well, the answer is pretty easy, but painful to admit.  I have not fully learned yet that my self-sufficiency falls tremendously short of the sufficiency of the God I serve.  I rely on my own abilities because I have not fully learned to humble myself in the presence of God and seek his way FIRST.  All of our Christian walk is a time of learning how to do this - it is not something that comes naturally to us, nor is it the easiest of lessons to learn.  In my failures, my willful testing times, I have learned that God has lessons to teach me, things to reveal in my character that need his "tweaking", and guidance for my future that will keep me safe.  

When I learn to keep my mind fixed on the counsel of God (first, not as a desperate last-resort), I have the reliability of his counsel to structure my plans according to his will.  In stepping out "with God" instead of stepping out "ahead of God", my life becomes a living testament of his grace, his guidance, and his love.  Those around me can sense his presence and are impacted by the evidence of his wisdom lived out in my life.  When this happens, I become a "living epistle" - for all men to see.

Want to walk with your head held high?  Want to be a living testimony of the grace of God?  Then learn to bring your choices before God - well in advance of making them all on your own - and ask him to breathe his wisdom into those choices.  When you do, you will be more than delighted with the results.  It will amaze you to see just what God will do in you, and through you, when the wisdom of his God-breathed counsel is guiding your steps!

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