A Crowded Life

Today's Reading: Psalm 104:33-35, Amos 9:13-15, & Titus 2

Scripture:

"I will sing to the LORD as long as I live; I will sing praise to my God while I have my being. Let my meditation be pleasing to Him; as for me, I shall be glad in the LORD." Psalm 104:33-35

Observation:

Life is crowded. Duties of the various roles played can consume all the margin in life. Spiritual pressures, financial pressures, parental pressures, job pressures, goal pressures, and even pressures from hobbies all rise up to split attention and drain energy. This passage is a great reminder of just how simple the goal of life should be: sing praise to God, please Him in thought, and be glad in Him.

Application:

As I look at this passage from Psalm, I realize I do not own these words in my life. If I were to rewrite it as a honest prayer, it would have to say "as long as I am getting what I want, understand what is taking place, and generally feel comfortable with my life I will sing to the LORD."

The simple command from God's Word is to seek Him first. The greatest commandment Jesus sighted was to love the LORD my God with all my heart, mind, and soul. Nowhere in there did Jesus mention anything about taking care of myself first.

Prayer:

Father, I can’t see how to get to where You are leading me this morning. I should sing praise to You for who You are, not because of what You do for me. I should please You in what my mind lingers on, not wrestle with self-centered escapes and pleasures. I should be glad in You, not just using You as a means to get joyful things. I confess to You this morning that my struggle in this area is sinful. My praise is condition. The meditations of my mind are messy. My gladness is tied to the condition of my life. I ask for Your forgiveness.

My flesh is warring hard against this word this morning. My mind is scrambling to understand how to live it out. It does not seem practical or possible to not be distracted by the pressures of life. It does not seem practical or possible to separate my relationship with You from the day-to-day and place You in Your rightful place as being number one in my life. I ask that You lead me today in spirit and truth as I seek to walk in obedience to Your leading in my life.