December 23, 2024

This Week…Psalms 25:8 and 9

SeekingHimLogo

Good and upright is the Lord;
therefore He instructs sinners in His ways.
He guides the humble in what is right
and teaches them His way.
Psalms 25:8 and 9 NIV

What a loving and kind God we have—He doesn’t just tell us that we must follow His ways (though He could do that).  He instructs and teaches us His ways. Who could be a better teacher than He?  No one.  And when we humbly seek His instruction and guidance, He faithfully teaches us His ways.

This week’s devotionals have centered on verses 8 and 9 of Psalm 25.  Earlier on in this psalm, David asks his God to teach him; listen:

Show me Your ways, Lord,
teach me Your paths.
Guide me in Your truth and teach me,
for You are God my Savior,
and my hope is in You all day long.

And these are the very things that my friends…Ann, Ahmee, Cynda, Laura, and Tina…have shared in the Seeking Him devotional blog this week.  Here is a short synopsis of some truths that they have shared.

Laura shared about the vital importance of being in a relationship with our Teacher:
“We become wiser the longer we stay in the Word of God and immerse ourselves in our relationship with Christ…By allowing God to be our Teacher, we gain the wisdom to be able to discern what is right and wrong. We become humbled and are able to teach others about God.”

Tina reminded us how humility allows us to be teachable:
“We, as believers, continue to learn every day. Each day is a new opportunity to learn about the wonder of our God. He shows us what is available to us. All we have to do is look and take action. God wants us to seek after Him and be teachable. We can do this by becoming humble. We are to ask God to reveal His heart to us and we need to be receptive to His Word.”

Ahmee wrote about God’s accessibility and willingness to teach us:
“…all you need to do is ask Him for help and He will guide you…One thing I love about God is that He is accessible. Even though He lives where we cannot physically see Him (like we would our friends or family), He is still ever so close to us. He also has a limitless wealth of wisdom and knowledge, and He is willing to share with us!”

Ann brought us back to foundation of asking and seeking:
“…seeking His guidance. And also make sure we are guided by the Spirit of God through the Word of God.” Take a look, again, at the some of the Scriptures she shared with us.
When we allow God to guide us…Psalm 32:8
He will guide us into glory..Psalm 73:24
He will guide our path…Isaiah 42:16 (also Isaiah 48:17, Luke 1:79)
He will guide us in all truth…John 16:13

Cynda focused on the value of biblical humility—’a lowliness of mind’ and being ‘submissive, meek, contrite, teachable.’  She wrote, “I would much rather bask in God’s grace than have God oppose me; wouldn’t you? Psalm 25:9 states that if we are willing to be humble, God Himself will teach us His ways. I couldn’t ask for a better teacher!”

How very thankful I am for each of these reminders!  I want to be humble and meek…teachable…soaking up like a sponge all that my Father chooses to teach me.  You, too?

Being Teachable

SeekingHimLogo

Good and upright is the Lord;
therefore will He instruct sinners in [His] way.
He leads the humble in what is right, and the humble He teaches His way.
Psalms 25:8-9

We have heard the phrase, “You are not too old to learn,” right?  We, as believers, continue to learn every day.  Each day is a new opportunity to learn about the wonder of our God.  He shows us what is available to us.  All we have to do is look and take action.

When we attend a Bible study, we have set certain expectations for ourselves and for the group.  God wants us to seek after Him and be teachable.  We can do this by becoming humble.  We are to ask God to reveal His heart to us and we need to be receptive to His Word.

When the psalmist writes, ‘therefore will He instruct sinners in His way’, he is telling us God wants us to follow the one true path to Heaven—which is through Him and belief in His Son, Jesus.  Then He wants to lead the afflicted in what is right and wants to teach them His way.

When we go through strife, it seems we become more teachable in those moments.  Our defenses are down and we are more willing to receive the instruction of the Holy Spirit.  Why?  Because we are seeking answers that are outside of our own understanding.  While we continue to seek His will for our lives, we will grow in knowledge.  It is only when we become comfortable and complacent that we begin to forget to seek Him first.

Let’s pray,

Father, thank you for your unconditional love. Thank you for sending your son Jesus as an example for us to follow. Thank you for the Holy Spirit, our helper in all things. With praise and thanks and gratitude for your great mercy and grace. Forgive us when we take our eyes off of your will and look at things with our eyes, not with yours. Train us to seek your will, not ours. In Jesus’ name, Amen