March 2 – Fit For Glory (Psalm 19)

“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in Your sight, O Lord, my Rock and my redeemer.”
(Psalm 19:14)

IN WORD:
Psalm 19 is all about the glory of God and the perfection of the things He has ordained. It ends with David’s desire to live consistently with God’s ordinances. In such a glorious creation that proclaims God’s goodness from the rising of the sun to its setting, David knows how tragic it would be not to fit in. He prays for forgiveness and for protection from willful sins (verses 12-13). And then he gets to the heart of the matter: the purity of words and thoughts. Most of us can maintain righteous behavior most of the time. Our deepest struggles are in our thought life and the words that proceed from it. James even goes so far as to tell us that anyone who has mastered the tongue has become perfect (James 3:2). Why? Because the tongue is a barometer for the mind. It measures what is going on inside our heads. Sooner or later, it will tell the truth about us — that we have pride, prejudices, impurities, petty agendas, and a strong self-will. If we can keep ourselves pure within, we will be pure in our speech and in our actions as well.

IN DEED:
Are you fit for glory? Do your thoughts and your words reflect the truth of who God is? Do they admire His ordinances? Anyone who is honest will have to admit that, many times, our inward thoughts lie to us about God — His love, His purity, His care for us, the goodness of His plan. And, many times, those thoughts slander His ordinances. We want to violate them in ways that will be pleasing to us or that will satisfy our personal agendas. We constantly need to ask ourselves whether our words and even our thoughts fit with the God of glory & truth.
Follow David’s example. Marvel at the glory of God’s creation. Praise the wisdom of His statutes. Count on His forgiveness. And then ask that He might grant you the blessing of having meditations and speech that is pleasing to Him.

“Holy Spirit, think through me till Your ideas are my ideas.”
-Amy Carmichael-