Teachable heart - Part I

Train me, God, to walk straight; 

      then I'll follow your true path. 

   Put me together, one heart and mind; 

      then, undivided, I'll worship in joyful fear. 

(Psalm 86:11-12)

It is a hard thing for us to learn that every sin, every compromise, has some type of fruit that results from those decisions.  Every time we sin, we miss out on some portion of what God originally intended for us.  When we compromise, we are allowing the "wholeness" of our being to be compromised, as well.  It is in obedience that we experience the greatest degree of "wholeness".

The prayer reflected in our passage today is one of a "teachable" heart.  David often prayed this prayer.  He wanted nothing more than to have - really walk in - a teachable frame of mind, spirit, and will.  Here are just a few of the words of a teachable heart:

• Protect me - whenever we see David uttering these words, he is usually asking God for his covering so that he would not suffer injury or destruction at the hands of his enemies.  He was asking God to defend his cause so that he did not have to do it himself.  God's defense is usually the best!
• I am devoted to you - every part of my being is committed to you.  David was concerned that he would experience wholeness in his life - he knew this came by centering his attention and every activity of his life on what it was that God intended for him.
• Save me - a most revealing prayer, as it reflects both desperation and dependence.  Whenever David was praying for God to intervene with salvation, it was because he was experiencing some type of danger.  The danger may have been because his desire to sin would have put him in a place he did not want to be, or because he would experience some type of harm if God did not intervene.  His real prayer was that God would keep him from loss in his life.
• I serve you / I trust you - it was because David had come to know the character of God that he could confidently state it was in him that he placed his trust.  
• Be merciful - this is the prayer of a heart that doesn't deserve what he receives, but needs it desperately!
• I am calling out constantly - David was both frequent in his prayers and he was consistent.  He had learned that God never tires of hearing his needs - even when they are the same needs over and over again.
• Give me happiness / let me delight - the sign of a teachable heart is to realize that what we derive our "happiness" from is what has control of us.  David wanted to delight in God's graces and goodness, not in the pleasures of the world around him.  That thrilled the heart of God.
• My life depends on you - these are probably the most profound words he uttered.  Without God's intervention, nothing would be as it should.

These are but a handful of the prayers of David.  The Book of Psalms are full of these types of prayers.  Each unique in its own way.  David was a man commended for the teachable heart he had come to have.  It is my hope that we will have the same enjoyment of God's commendation for the teachable heart we are developing!