Psalm 119

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On this cold rainy afternoon I'd made a very tall cup of coffee and was slowly making my way through Psalm 119:  it's filled with two line nuggets of gold and I was mining it for all it was worth.

 Remember Your promise to me for it is my hope (v. 49)
Your principles have been the music of my life throughout the years of my pilgrimage (v. 54)
 Lord, you are mine!...with all my heart I want your blessings (v. 57)
 All your commands are trustworthy (v.86)
Lord, accept my grateful thanks (v. 108)
You are near O Lord, and all your commands are true (v. 151)
Let my lips burst forth in praise for You have taught me your principles. Let my tongue sing about Your Word. (v. 171)

The whole psalm is like a love letter to the Lord about the value of His commands and how they have guided the psalmist all throughout his life and have been his joy and peace even though his enemies have been out to get him. At one point it even seemed to me that the writer was a bit of a braggart as he keeps saying how much he loves God's law and has kept his commands; it's obvious that God is a very big and very important part of his life.

So I guess that is why the last verse caught me unaware...

I have wandered away like a lost sheep; come and find me for I have not forgotten your commands. (v. 176)

After 175 verses of praise and faithfulness the psalm concludes with an admission of humanness - although I LOVE your law, O Lord; I have wandered away... However victorious and faithful I've been to
You through all these years, at the moment I'm not there. And in his admission is honesty, humility, and a cry for help - Come and find me. Other translations say, Seek thy servant.

No matter how much we love God's Word, or how long our feet have faithfully stayed on His path; there are times we wander. And wander is such a good term for it; not a deliberate stomping off God's path to pursue our own desires but just kind of a mindless, not being diligent, kind of wandering until we look up and wonder "how did I get here?"

But the beauty is that, no matter we've endd up here, He is willing and able to come and bring us home!

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