My Anxious Thoughts

If you have been doing the assignment we gave at our worship service last Sabbath you will have encountered these verses at the end of Psalm 139:

Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. Point out anything in me that offends you, and lead me along the path of everlasting life.(Psalm 139:23-24 , NLT) 

This is what David prayed at the end of a beautiful Psalm that considers how much God loves us and is involved in our lives.

If you just look at this prayer, it looks a bit scary. When you invite someone into your life this deeply and then ask them to point out anything in your life they find offensive, you are really opening yourself up.

Many of us know from experience that if we do this with people, it often doesn’t end well.

But this prayer is at the end of a passage that points out the obvious – God is so interested in you and your life that he already knows everything there is to know about you. 

He knows you better than you know yourself. Because He loves you so much He pays attention to what is happening in your life. You are never hidden from Him. His desire is for you to spend eternity with Him in a place that is free of all the stuff that causes pain, sickness, and death.

You can know that that whatever He tells you in response to this prayer will come from a place of love. It comes from His desire to be with you forever. He response is meant to help you grow and become the person He designed you to be.

I have been praying this prayer this week. God has let me know there are some areas where I don’t trust Him like I should and I have been holding on to some attitudes that do not reflect our God of love.

But, He has done it in a way that has not felt condemning. He has been firm, but gentle! And it always comes with the promise that He will be at work to make the changes needed as long as I cooperate.

If you have never prayed this prayer, I urge you to do so. And then, pay attention to the promptings you get, the impressions you sense, and other passages of Scripture you have been reading. God will make Himself known.

And, if you let Him, will make a difference in your life making you into the person your were designed to be. It is only there that you can find peace, contentment, and security.