"Blessed are those who keep His testimonies, who seek Him with the whole heart!" (Psalm 119:2)
Some have intimated to me over the years that my emphasis on prayer and Bible reading verges on a religious "spirit." My only response would be my testimony, that when I was at the lowest point of my existence 41 years ago, it was only, "the words of God," which saved my life, not some religious seminar or "praise gathering." I have no confidence that I would be writing this today if it had not been for, "the prayers of the saints," and, "His testimonies." I really don't want to imagine where life would have taken me; so, may no one ever talk to me about a "religious spirit," or, another accusation, bringing people into some condemnation by so much emphasis on what some would just call "religious exercises." If I may so say it, one of the most "powerful" Names of the Son of God to me is, "The Word of God"!
Our text indicates the, "Blessed are those," status belongs to, "those who keep his testimonies, who seek Him with the whole heart!" It is not, "Blessed are those who," give a lot of money, attend a lot of church services, get goose bumps upon goose bumps during worship services. How to fulfill the latter part of our text is found in the first part, "those who keep his testimonies." Some may think that to, "seek Him with the whole heart," means to pray 8 hours a day, fast 'til you weigh 10 pounds, read through the Bible every week, go door to door passing out tracks every day, attend every meeting any Christian organization sponsors in a 40 mile radius, straining and groaning in prayer until exhaustion. It does not. It means a life of obedience to Jesus Christ and, "His Testimonies," i.e., His Words------------- right there in that office, that shop, that school, that beach, that motorcycle ride, that family gathering. To seek the Living Triune God, "with the whole heart!" is to obey Him, "with the whole heart!"
So, let's make covenant today that for the rest of our lives we will, "seek Him with the whole heart!"----- the heart of obedience to what He says. As Paul once wrote to a few Believers, "For God... appoint[ed] us...to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ. He died for us so that, whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with Him."
Father, in Jesus' Name, thank You for showing me that being a, "Blessed," person, a "whole heart," Follower of You, is being a, "keep-His-testimonies," person. Amen.
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See YouTube Video at: www.apf327.blogspot.com
When Peter, an 18 year old Norwegian, "heard the call to evangelize China, on that day he not only emptied his wallet into the collection plate, but included a small note with the words, 'and my life.'"
"Looking unto Jesus"
Hebrews 12:2
