Devotional Living, Psalms

The Path to Happiness

Life Path

Tuesday February 18, 2020

Yesterday was hubs’ birthday!

I was thinking about how much I love him.

I don’t think I realized when we got married that committing to being together for the rest of our lives is exactly as we vowed…richer, poorer, sickness, health, only death will part us. Arguing, forgiving. Disappointing each other, loving. Laughing, crying. Having babies, watching them grow up and leave home. Grandbabies. Holding each other, pushing away. Coming together and staying together. Life.

Looking back on our marriage I realize that our commitment to each other has truly reflected the relationship we’ve had with the Lord.

Interwoven, entwined. Like our hearts.

So hubs, I love you. Thankful your parents made this day happen (haha)! I love how you’ve changed over the years, I love how you’ve grown in your love and devotion to the Lord and how soft your heart has become. Thanks for loving me. I pray we have many more years together xo

I was reading Psalm 16:11 this morning, thinking about my life, this path I’ve been on for the past half century. The verse says, “You have made known to me to path of life, you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand.”

You have made known to me implies that there is a search going on. There’s been a holy revelation. A divine uncovering of a secret, hidden until I dig for it.

Joy in his presence. Eternal pleasures at his right hand. It sounds so refreshing, so terribly inviting.

I love the intimacy in this verse, it feels like the psalmist is drawing close to my ears and whispering a secret. You’re worried about tomorrow he says, you’re scared about what is to come. Don’t be. You’ll find true life, you’ll be so full of the Lord that joy will replace your sadness. Instead of pursuing things that are temporal, in his presence you’ll experience the type of pleasures that will last for eternity.

In the New Testament Jesus calls himself the way, the truth and the life. Jesus. I say it often don’t I? Just Jesus. Sin sucks the life from us, dependence on anything or anyone outside of him fails miserably at bringing fulfillment.

Only Jesus has the power to provide life to our mortal bodies, to our souls, to our eternity.

I look at pictures of myself when I was a teenager and far from the Lord and I can see it on my face. Hard, closed off, angry, defiant. Dead. That was, until I decided that serving the Lord was better than serving all the idols I had accumulated. Funny…my face opened up, clearer, lighter, happy, thankful.

There is power in my path, power between life in the presence of the Lord or death in the presence of anything else.

So Lord, I need you so much today. So often I find myself pursuing fulfillment in things other than you. I wander off your path and lose my joy. Help me to stay focused on you, I long to know you more. Fill me with your presence so that nothing else fits into my life but you.

reflect…

  1. How joyful are you? If you were to rate it from 1-10 where would you be?
  2. What does your path look like right now? Is it Jesus-focused or self-centered?
  3. Would you like a holy revelation from the Lord? He promises that if you seek him, you WILL find him!