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Gleanings From The Word

Category: Wisdom

  • Psalm 25: Teach Me Your Ways, Lord

    A meditating spot overlooking the ocean. A place to think on God's teaching

    This morning, I’ve been reading in Psalm 25. It seemed a natural place after reading Psalm 24. I’m just going to camp on one small section of the Psalm this morning, so let me give you an overview of the entire thing first. It’s worth reading and meditating on. 

    Psalm 25 opens with David lifting his soul to the Lord and trusting Him not to let him be put to shame before his enemies. From there he asks God to teach him, to lead him in truth, and to remember him according to mercy rather than the sins of his youth. He pauses to reflect on who God is: good, upright, ready to instruct sinners and guide the humble.

    Then the urgency returns. David cries out for God to look on his affliction, forgive his sin, and deliver him from his enemies because he has taken refuge in the Lord. He doesn’t stop with himself either; he closes by asking God to redeem all of Israel out of their troubles. The prayer moves from trust, to teaching, to reflection, to rescue, and finally outward to the whole people of God.

    Like David, we often find ourselves in situations where we need help and refuge. We call out and He answers. But David does more than call out to YAHWEH for help; he asks God to teach Him.

    Make me to know your ways, O Lord;

    teach me your paths.

    Lead me in your truth and teach me,

    for you are the God of my salvation;

    for you I wait all the day long. Psalm 25:4-5 ESV

    God is so much more than a cosmic genie to bail us out of trouble and keep us out of hell. Our faith walk is more than crying out to God when we have a need. The Lord wants to be in a relationship with us and to make us more like Jesus.

    The lord loves those with humble hearts who seek Him and His desires. He loves to teach us His ways and sanctify us. The more we become like Christ, the more freely we call out to Him; we crave His presence, not just think of Him as an afterthought when we are in trouble.

    I know who I am without the Lord at work in my life. I don’t want to be that person anymore. I want the fruit of the Spirit to show abundantly in my life.

    Lord, teach me to judge less and extend grace and forgiveness more easily. Teach me to keep my mouth closed to inappropriate things and to allow words of blessing to come forth. Make me kind and generous, learning to put others first rather than thinking that I’m the center of the universe and everything is about me. Create in me a clean heart. Teach me to be faithful.

    Thank you for the Spirit and the Word. Thank you that I’m not who I once was and that you are transforming me into who you call me to be.

    May we be like David and seek the Lord’s face and to be transformed into His image.

    May you be blessed today,

    Kevin

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    SUMMARY

    This morning I’m reading in Psalm 25 and camping on David’s request that God teach him His ways, not just rescue him from trouble. I’m reminded that a relationship with the Lord means wanting to be shaped into Christ’s likeness, not just calling on Him when I need help.

    TAKEAWAY

    Psalm 25 moves from trust, to teaching, to reflection on God’s character, to urgent rescue, and finally outward to all of Israel.

    David asks God to teach him His ways in Psalm 25:4-5, showing that our faith is about more than calling out to God in crisis.

    The Lord wants to sanctify us and grow the fruit of the Spirit in our lives, not just answer our prayers for deliverance.

    Soli Deo Gloria (For the glory of God alone) 

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  • Way of Wisdom – Discovering True Enlightenment

    Way of Wisdom – Discovering True Enlightenment

    Oasis secene - theme the way of wisdom - Psalm 1:4

    Wisdom is a prized commodity. People of all faiths and cultures have sought it throughout the ages. Where can it be found? What is the way of wisdom?

    The Bible is full of passages that teach the way of wisdom and righteousness. They both come from the LORD. The psalms open with a clear sample.

    How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, Nor stand in the way of sinners, Nor sit in the seat of scoffers! But his delight is in the law of Yahweh,  And in His law he meditates day and night. And he will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water,  Which yields its fruit in its season  And its leaf does not wither;  And in whatever he does, he prospers.  The wicked are not so, But they are like chaff which the wind drives away.  Therefore the wicked will not rise in the judgment,  Nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous.  For Yahweh knows the way of the righteous,  But the way of the wicked will perish. Psalm 1

    The Bible clearly teaches that both wisdom and righteousness are clearly related.

    Notice how the psalm begins, not with a list of things to do, but with a warning about where not to go. Wisdom starts with avoidance. Don’t walk in the counsel of the wicked. Don’t linger where sinners stand. Don’t settle into the seat of those who mock.

    That progression is worth slowing down for. You walk somewhere first. Then you stand. Then you sit. What begins as a passing influence can become a permanent address.

    We all know how that works. We’ve seen it happen to people we love. Maybe we’ve seen it happen to ourselves.

    But the psalm doesn’t stop at what to avoid. It moves quickly to what the wise person pursues, to delight in the law of Yahweh (the LORD). Not reluctant obedience. Not dutiful compliance. Delight.

    That’s a high bar. And it’s an honest one.

    The word of God is not a rulebook to endure. It is a well to drink from. The person who meditates on it day and night isn’t grinding through an obligation; they are drinking deeply from something that sustains them.

    The image the psalmist reaches for is a tree planted by streams of water. Not a tree that survives on rainfall alone, dependent on the weather, struggling in dry seasons. A tree with its roots in something constant. 

    It yields fruit. Its leaves don’t wither. Whatever it does, it prospers.

    That is the life wisdom builds, not overnight, but over time, with roots going down where no drought can reach.

    The contrast is sharp and final. The wicked are like chaff. Disconnected. Weightless. Driven by whatever wind is blowing today. When judgment comes, there is nothing there to stand.

    The LORD knows the way of the righteous. That phrase carries more than knowledge. It carries an intimate acquaintance. He knows the path because He is the one who laid it out and walks it with you.

    The way of the wicked perishes. Not because God abandons them dramatically. But because a path that leads nowhere simply ends.

    Wisdom is knowing which path you’re on. May you find it.

    Hallelu Yah (Praise God) 

    Be blessed 

    Kevin 

    SUMMARY

    Psalm 1 teaches that wisdom and righteousness begin by rejecting the influence of the wicked and delighting instead in the law of the LORD. The righteous person is compared to a tree planted by streams of water, firmly rooted and fruitful, while the wicked are unstable like chaff that the wind drives away.

    KEY POINTS

    Wisdom begins with guarding where you walk, stand, and sit, because small influences can shape an entire life.

    The person who delights in and meditates on God’s Word is spiritually sustained, fruitful, and steadfast through every season.

    The righteous are known personally by Yahweh (the LORD), while the path of the wicked ultimately leads to destruction.

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