GET OVER IT, AND GET ON WITH IT –

After renewing his commitment to God, then pledging his full faith and confidence in God’s Word and steadfast love to see him through, the young man writing this psalm now sees fit to give a very personal and graphic picture of the misery and pain caused by those working against him. He did this to get rid of it and to get over it. He was not interested in merely sounding good or filling the page with beautiful poetic expressions of thanks and praise, but to seal his pledge of remaining true and faithful to the cause for which he was called. He didn’t care so much what his critics thought, but he was certainly interested in convincing God that he could be counted on to remain strong and resolute against all odds.

“I pour out my heart to You, O LORD Eternal, and since I treasure Your principles for living, I want to hear from You. Yes, I cry out to You so You can get me through this difficulty, that way I’ll be able to continue following Your instructions. In fact, I get up at the break of dawn and fall on my knees in prayer, I’m putting my hope in Your counsel. And I stay away awake late into the night so I can continue meditating on Your promises. O LORD Eternal, be graceful and listen to my prayer; and since You are known for doing things right, renew my spirit of commitment. Those who love only for the joy of the flesh seem to be surrounding me; they pay less and less attention to Your Teaching. But You are always close by, O LORD Eternal; and Your commandments have proven to be true. Long ago I found out through Your instructions, that You always back up what You say.”

“So take a look at what I’m going through and help me find a way to cope with it, for I have not stopped living according to Your Teachings. I pray You will stand up for my cause and support my efforts; I’m depending on Your promise to keep me motivated. Any hope of escaping a terrible end is slipping away from the wicked, because they completely ignore Your principles for living. Your compassion is endless, O LORD Eternal, so in keeping with Your declarations, strengthen my resolve. Although the number of my critics and opponents is increasing, I’ve given no thought to turning away from Your instructions to me. I must admit, these back-stabbers disgust me; because they do not take Your advice seriously. You see how much affection I have for Your guidelines, O LORD Eternal, so according to Your grace, give me the strength to keep going. One thing Your advice has proven beyond all doubt, that it is true; therefore all your just declarations will endure forever.” Psalm 119:145-160

Reflection: We’ve learned from history that Secretary of State William Seward took the final draft of the Emancipation Proclamation to President Abraham Lincoln at noon on Thursday, January 1, 1853, and laid it on the President’s desk. Twice President Lincoln picked up his ink pen to sign the proclamation, and twice he laid the pen back down without doing so. Turning to Secretary Seward, President Lincoln remarked, “I have been shaking people’s hands since 9:00 o’clock this morning, and my right arm is almost paralyzed. If my name ever goes into history, it will be for this act, and my whole soul is in it. If my hand trembles when I sign the proclamation, all who examine the document hereafter will say, ‘He hesitated’.” After a short pause, the president then took up the pen and slowly but firmly signed it “Abraham Lincoln.” That historic act forever endeared Lincoln to the world as the Great Emancipator. The psalmist felt a similar conviction about what he signed onto when he agreed to follow God’s Word and live by His directions and guidelines for living. He didn’t want his family, friends, neighbors, and especially his adversaries to detect any doubt or hesitation in his heart or mind about his dedication to the cause. He knew that God possessed the only source of strength that allowed him to keep his steel resolve. But both the psalmist and President Lincoln serve as examples to follow when we are confronted by those who don’t believe we stand by what we say. Each day we should ask ourselves, if we were being judged for being wholeheartedly committed to God’s will and purpose for our lives, would our harshest critics doubt us because they saw some hesitation in our vows?