When We Go Astray – Ps 119:113-176
The tone of Psalm 119 implies that the writer of the Psalm was experiencing mistreatment from his enemies. Psalm 119 is his attempt to remind himself of the truths of God’s Word in the midst of trouble. He also confesses at the very end of the Psalm that he had gone astray like a lost sheep, that he wanted God to seek him and that he could not forget God’s commandments.
So, even though the Psalm has many expressions of faith and delight in God’s Word, it also shows the honest heart of a person struggling to trust God, a person who has gone astray in the past, and a person who wanted God to bring him back. This encourages me because I struggle. There are times, I don’t love God’s truth, I drift away from the Lord, and I am not trusting God the way I should.
Yet, God seeks me. He reminds me of His truth. I cannot forget God’s Word, and God brings me back and brings me close. He restores my soul. He shows me what is really valuable and captures my heart once again.
May we rejoice in God’s Word. May we meditate on it. May we get it in our hearts, so that we cannot forget it. And may we not turn aside. May we keep drawing closer to the Lord. And finally, may we praise Him for how He seeks us when we go astray and brings us back.