Tune My Heart, Episode 46
- Stacy Bishop
- Jun 5
- 3 min read
Happy Sunday, friend. As you prepare for worship this morning, let’s take a moment of quiet to invite God’s presence into your awareness today.
Today we’re reading the very last two sections of Psalm 119, verses 161-176:
ש Sin and Shin
161 Rulers persecute me without cause,
but my heart trembles at your word.
162 I rejoice in your promise
like one who finds great spoil.
163 I hate and detest falsehood
but I love your law.
164 Seven times a day I praise you
for your righteous laws.
165 Great peace have those who love your law,
and nothing can make them stumble.
166 I wait for your salvation, Lord,
and I follow your commands.
167 I obey your statutes,
for I love them greatly.
168 I obey your precepts and your statutes,
for all my ways are known to you.
ת Taw
169 May my cry come before you, Lord;
give me understanding according to your word.
170 May my supplication come before you;
deliver me according to your promise.
171 May my lips overflow with praise,
for you teach me your decrees.
172 May my tongue sing of your word,
for all your commands are righteous.
173 May your hand be ready to help me,
for I have chosen your precepts.
174 I long for your salvation, Lord,
and your law gives me delight.
175 Let me live that I may praise you,
and may your laws sustain me.
176 I have strayed like a lost sheep.
Seek your servant,
for I have not forgotten your commands.
There are two things that really stand out to me from these passages. The first is from verse 167:
167 I obey your statutes, for I love them greatly.
Another translation says, “My soul keeps your testimonies, and I love them exceedingly.” The idea that comes across here is that David is obedient to the law of God because he truly loves the law. He doesn’t obey because someone will see him. He doesn’t obey, begrudgingly, because it’s the right thing to do. He does it because he loves God and His law.
I think we can all admit that sometimes, we obey because we know we’re supposed to obey, not because our heart wants to obey. His knowledge of God’s law and seeing God’s faithfulness to him over and over made David truly love His ways with his whole heart, his soul. It’s okay to pray that our hearts would also learn to love God’s laws like this.
The second thing that stands out is verses 171-172:
171 May my lips overflow with praise,
for you teach me your decrees.
172 May my tongue sing of your word,
for all your commands are righteous.
Whether it was David’s intent here or not, this translation reads like David is asking God to help him to keep praising Him. I don’t know if I’ve ever prayed that specifically before, but I think it’s a really valid prayer for us to pray, especially if you’re in the worship leader category as a listener. When praise is natural—when it’s our lips overflowing with praise—our worship on a stage on Sunday morning becomes natural, too. We’re simply doing on the stage what we do in our private lives the other six days of the week.
Let’s make that our prayer as we wrap up this Psalm of praise.
Father, Would you help make us more like David. You called him a man after your own heart, and we long to be that familiar and intimate with You. Help our hearts to learn to love Your laws and that this love we have for You and Your ways would overflow in praise in our lives. God, help us to see You all around us—in the big ways and in the mundane details of our lives—that we would naturally respond in praise. That our hearts would authentically praise You and follow You because of our love for You. Thank You for this Psalm that has taught us and challenged us in so many different ways. As we lead today, help us to see You. It’s in Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.
A printable/downloadable version of today's devo can be found here:
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