It was windy last night and there was something popping outside. I thought that we had possibly left a storage door open or something of that nature, so I ventured outside to see if I could figure it out.
Everything was buttoned up tight. I came back in, it was 2:30 am and I knew there was no going back to sleep. It was time to pray. I began to meditate on God’s goodness…what a wonderful, comforting and strengthening thing that is to do.
A verse from my childhood Sunday School memorization came to mind.
“Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Thy sight, Oh Lord, my strength and my redeemer.” Psalm 19:14 KJV
I will be honest with you – my thoughts at 2 am were “this is going to be a long day” and if I would have continued to think on that I know by mid-day I would be worn out and somewhat grumpy. Not an acceptable meditation.
So, I opened my Bible to read the entire chapter of Psalm 19. When we ask the Lord to redirect our thoughts, He will.
“The Law of the Lord is perfect, giving new strength to the soul. The Law He has made known is sure, making the child-like wise. 8 The Laws of the Lord are right, giving joy to the heart. The Word of the Lord is pure, giving light to the eyes. 9 The fear of the Lord is pure, lasting forever. The Lord is always true and right in how He judges. 10 The Word of the Lord is worth more than gold, even more than much fine gold. They are sweeter than honey, even honey straight from the comb. 11 And by them Your servant is told to be careful. In obeying them there is great reward.
12 Who can see his own mistakes? Forgive my sins that I do not see. 13 And keep Your servant from sinning by going my own way. Do not let these sins rule over me. Then I will be without blame. And I will not be found guilty of big sins. 14 Let the words of my mouth and the thoughts of my heart be pleasing in Your eyes, O Lord, my Rock and the One Who saves me.” Psalm 19:7-14 NLV
I have a choice today – so do you. We can meditate (think on continually) how tired we are, how little sleep we’ve had, how little strength and joy we have, how we are misunderstood and mistreated, or we can choose to make the thoughts of our heart centered on God’s Word.
His word will give us strength and make us wise. His word will give us joy and understanding. His word will never fail but instead will last forever. His word is more valuable than gold and sweeter than honey.
If we insist on going our own way and following our own thinking we can be led astray and possibly into sin – the sin of worry, self-pity, anxiousness and frustration.
We have a choice! I choose to make my thoughts and my words pleasing to the Lord!