Thursday Reflection October 7, 2021

Thursday Reflection October 7, 2021

An Undivided Heart

Teach me your way, O Lord, that I may walk in your truth; give me an undivided heart to revere your name. Psalms 86:11

Greeting friends!

Psalm 86 is considered a Psalm of individual Lament, which is an individual expressing pain over their present condition and seeking God’s help. The Psalmist begins by requesting a listening ear from God. He also asks the Lord to preserve his life. As he makes these requests of the Lord he recounts the faithfulness of the Lord and offer praise as well. As he continues to speak of the goodness and the might of the Lord, he asks the Lord to teach him the ways of the Lord so that he might walk in the truth. He also asks the Lord to give him an undivided heart to revere the name of the Lord.

In the midst of personal turmoil and trial the Psalmist seeks to please the Lord, so he asks the Lord to teach him. I can hear the words of the song writer Horatius Bonar saying:

” Thy way, not mine, O Lord, however dark it be; lead me by thine own hand, choose out the path for me.”

The ways of the Lord are not automatically or innately known. They have to be taught and who better to teach them than the Lord. So in the midst of challenges, although his life is threatened the Psalmist still has a desire to please the Lord and do God’s will so that he may walk in the truth.

The truth here not only means the right way, but walk in the Lord. Jesus said in St. John 14:6, “I am the way, the truth and the life.” The Psalmist seeks to be directed by the Lord. But in order to do this he realises that nothing else and no one else can take God’s place, so he asks for an undivided heart.

There are so many distractions in this world that prevents us from spending time with God and from showing God the deep respect and honour He deserves. Our heart becomes divided. Divided by so many things such as work, social media, friends, loved ones etc. When our heart becomes divided then our love for God gets divided. The request of the Psalmist in the midst of trouble is to ask God to help him not become distracted, so that he can love God with all his heart, soul, mind and strength.

Again another matter that the Lord has to help us with. It’s not innate, but something that has to be taught. We have to seek the help of God so that we give the Lord our undivided heart in order to revere or show Him the respect and love that He deserves.

Friends, let us pray to God and ask him to give us an undivided heart so that our love for him will more than anything else in this world.

Shalom
Christopher Euphfa