“You are my portion, O Lord; I have promised to obey Your words.

I have sought Your face with all my heart; be gracious to me according to Your promise.

I have considered my ways and have turned my steps to Your statutes.

I will hasten and not delay to obey Your commands.

Though the wicked bind me with ropes, I will not forget Your law.

At midnight I rise to give You thanks for Your righteous laws.

I am a friend to all who fear You, to all who follow Your precepts.

The earth is filled with Your love, O Lord; teach me Your decrees.”

-Psalm 119:57-64 Heth

Faith is active. In every verse the psalmist lives out his love for God by his actions, praying for the Lord’s help- more grace, more understanding. The first verse sets the tone for the section. God is his portion. The Lord is everything to him. It isn’t a cold transaction between a servant and his master, but love like a child has for his father. Young children often trust their fathers without question. They may think of their dad as a superhero who never gets tired and can do no wrong. Not until we mature do we see the humanity in our earthly fathers, which should lead us to the Perfect Father we desired all along. Oh for the faith of a child. They often take the ones they love at their word, without wringing their hands over the possible ‘what-if’ scenarios. This childlike, peace-filled love is how Adam loved God before the Fall, walking with Him in the cool of the day. 

The love God has toward His children goes deeper than any friendship or romantic love. It is love in the purest sense of the word, untainted with sin. God IS the very definition of love. It is deep fellowship love with the One who made us and loved us first. He knows us most intimately, not only how He created us physically, but also how we think and feel.

Most are too dull, too satisfied with the things of this life to taste divine love. C.S. Lewis is famously known for his quote:

“It would seem that Our Lord finds our desires not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased.” -The Weight of Glory 

Oh for more grace to have our eyes opened to such sweetness with the Father. Oh for more understanding to know His ways and follow the One who loves us best. 

Grace upon grace,

April 

Grow deeper: 1 John 4:11-17