You know those weeks where everything seems to go right? The ones where you sit and appreciate the sun when it is shining, when you love others well, when everything you have on your list is going swimmingly, and you seem to be on top of things? I love those weeks… but this has not been one of those weeks for me. I like to think I am a joyful person, but this week I have found myself tired, not sporting the best attitude all the time, and getting frustrated easily.
And I ask myself, “Why? What’s different about this week?” I haven’t been feeling very well, physically, so that could be part of it. I haven’t been sleeping well either, but these answers don’t quite seem to be enough for me. It feels like there must be more to it than that. And then, out of nowhere, it hits me right in the face, as obvious as ever… What’s going on this week is a lack of intentional time in God’s word. BINGO! There it is!
In Psalm 119:105, God’s word tells us, “Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.” I have heard this verse repeatedly, ever since I was a child, but this week it was brought to new light (forgive the pun). I have often found a direct correlation between my attitude and actions in life with my time in God’s word, but this week, as I realized my heart was off, God more directly helped me to understand why that was.
I have come to learn that when I am in the word regularly, it lights my path, guides my direction, and leads me to firm footing and green pasture. I am less easily swayed from the path of righteousness, joy, and life when I am immersed in time in God’s living and active word. His words to me are a buffet for my soul, bringing me goodness and satisfaction that is contagious, pushing against the broken parts of me. However, when I am not in the word, I find that I am less easily able to pick up on the times when my feet start to step off the path of honoring God in all I do. I find it’s easier for me to develop a bad attitude, to become negative, or to sound and look more like the world. Without the light of God’s word, it becomes a bit easier for me to walk more like someone in the darkness.
God reminded me of my extraordinary need for the light of His word this week. And just like someone who has been on a sugar-free diet feels when they encounter chocolate, I find myself hungering for the word even now, as I type these words. I wonder if you needed a reminder to sit at the feet of Jesus and bask in the light of His honey-sweet word today? It’s not a complicated notion, the word lighting our path, but I find it’s one whose profound impact on our souls is easy to forget. Are you in need of a heart or attitude check today? Get in the word, it will light up your path, and guide your feet to a place where your heart and soul can be refreshed in, and guided toward, Him.
Laura Dilley, Associate Pastor
