“My soul faints with longing for Your salvation, but I have put my hope in Your Word.” -Psalm 119:81

The purpose of life is to know, love and serve God. This means our existence matters. Yet it is a fruitless life, chasing the wind, apart from God. The chief end of man is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever as the Westminster Shorter Catechism states. The psalmist is fully aware of God as substance and sustainer of life, over our physical bodies and nourishment for the soul. This is why his deepest desire is to move closer to the Heavenly King. He is our strength. Also, as David’s (likely the writer of this psalm) enemies surround him relentlessly, his reaction is to cry out to God who delivers. He does not tailspin into fear but deliberately places his trust in the Sovereign Lord. Puritan William Gurnall wrote, “The world will beget a thousand cares and fears, but cannot quiet any of them.” So where do we go when we feel afraid, weary, disappointed or hopeless? 

Go to Jesus. Remember the dear price our Lord paid on the cross so that we no longer have to be mastered by sin and fear. Our salvation is only in Christ (Acts 4:12). Even the psalmist looked forward to a day when the Messiah would fulfill the promises of God. We have the advantage of looking back to Calvary to see what Jesus the Messiah has done. The certain hope of every believer lay with Jesus who showed us the full extent of His love through His life, death and resurrection. May God strengthen our faith in Him and kindle an inward fire in us. May the Lord enlarge our longing for Him, continually renew our mind through Scripture, and move mightily in us like this psalmist.

Grace upon grace,

April