Verses to Live By

By Mary A. Hake, OCW President

Early in my Christian life, I read the longest psalm in the Bible. It happened to be in the Living Bible, the first Bible I ever owned. I’d received this paperback version from Billy Graham’s ministry after watching his crusade on television and praying to accept Jesus Christ as my Savior. I don’t think I had ever heard or read Psalm 119 in its entirety before that day.

The words spoke directly to my heart. Their life-changing impact prompted me to share it with a friend. She listened as I read and read.

I love to read the Psalms—truly a book for all seasons, filled with great riches for the soul. And every year, at least once, I pore over Psalm 119. Its wise counsel continues to draw me. It’s like reading King David’s journal as he considers God’s precepts and His guidance and how to live appropriately in light of His Word.

While homeschooling my girls, we studied this psalm. We learned the twenty-two letters of the Hebrew alphabet that head each eight-verse section and a key verse from each division. My daughters memorized all 176 verses.

This year, I decided to make this masterpiece my focus—to try to ponder a section each day. I thought I could make it through the whole psalm in the King James Version easily, allowing about two days per verse. I hoped to memorize as I went. Lofty dreams. By mid-February I was still going over the first five verses.

When I take the time to meditate on each line, I find it speaks volumes. Psalm 119 teaches respect for God’s ways and His law. It’s filled with wisdom and good advice.

I don’t take enough time to linger over His magnificent written Word, to let it sink in and savor its teaching. How often does it merely tickle my ear or earn a nod of approval rather than adjust my course or reconfigure my thinking?

“O that my ways were directed to keep thy statutes!” (verse 5). I have the desire, yes, but seem to lack the deep commitment and perseverance necessary to be completely successful. I need to keep returning to my Lord and His Word for guidance and assistance in my struggling journey.

Verse 2 says, “Blessed are they that keep his testimonies, and that seek him with the whole heart.” That has stuck with me and become my theme verse this year. It is my longing and my goal. I feel I still have so far to go, but God is patient and loving. He encourages me to keep treading the path with Him.

What does all this have to do with writing? you wonder. Well, all of my life contributes to my writing. Who I am overflows onto the page. It inspires my compositions. It reaches and teaches others. And, hopefully, it pleases my Lord.

David mentions “understanding” a number of times—important for writers and for their audience. Without it, how can we communicate clearly? As we grow in knowledge and understanding of God’s truth, we can better pass it on to our readers. No matter if we write for Christians or for the world at large, our message contains truth—something we believe we should share with others. “Make me to understand the way of thy precepts: so shall I talk of thy wondrous works” (verse 27).

I encourage you to take a chunk of time and check out this opus of a psalm. If you don’t turn over a gold nugget to claim, I’d be quite surprised. Let God use Psalm 119 to instruct you or to reaffirm something in your life. I’m convinced He can employ it as a guide for anyone who seeks. It’s better than MapQuest, which has been known to be wrong or outdated at times. It’s more accurate than a dictionary or an encyclopedia, which have to be changed to keep up with current culture. “Thy word is true from the beginning: and every one of thy righteous judgments endureth for ever” (verse 160).

I might be studying this psalm until the day I die. (Maybe by then I’ll be able to quote it from memory.) Oh, that I would grow much closer to modeling its teaching than I am today. Both in my spiritual life and in my writing, I want to grow and become conformed to God’s image. He wants the best, and so do I.