Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. Matthew 5:6 (NIV)
I wasn’t looking for a theme. Quite honestly, I was looking for a snippet of encouragement to get me through rough days–those days when things seem to go wrong and my reactions, thoughts, and words are not righteous at all. I was looking for a verse that I could say to myself, to bolster my faith through difficulties–even those that are self-inflicted. Fortunately for me, the Lord is more interested in the circumcision of my heart than quick fixes.
Now what I am commanding you today is not too difficult for you or beyond your reach. It is not up in heaven, so that you have to ask, “Who will ascend into heaven to get it and proclaim it to us so we may obey it?” Nor is it beyond the sea, so that you have to ask, “Who will cross the sea to get it and proclaim it to us so we may obey it?” No, the word is very near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart so you may obey it. Deuteronomy 30:11-14. (Emphasis mine.)
Righteous meditations, the running theme through Psalm 119(:73-96); he seeks it too.
Give me understanding to learn your commands … for I have put my hope in your word … your laws are righteous, and in faithfulness you have afflicted me … let your compassion come to me that I may live, for your law is my delight … I will meditate on your precepts … my soul faints with longing for your salvation, but I have put my hope in your word … preserve my life according to your love, and I will obey the statutes of your mouth … your word, O LORD, is eternal; it stands firm in the heavens.
Obstacles will come. Hardships exist. Like the psalmist writes in antiquity, it’s still true today: if your law had not been my delight, I would have perished in my affliction.
Lord, you say, “I live in a high and holy place, but also with him who is contrite and lowly in spirit, to revive the spirit of the lowly and revive the heart of the contrite.” Isaiah 50:15
“Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished.” Matthew 5:17-18
The Lord is with me in all circumstances. When I seek him, he’s there to guide me and give me peace. He heals and restores.
In today’s reading, I found encouragement in nearly every line of scripture–and I am filled.
Courtney (66books365)
Sixty-six books in a year 