January 04, 2022 – Tuesday
Psalm 37:3-4 NKJV
3 Trust in the Lord, and do good; Dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness.
4 Delight yourself also in the Lord, And He shall give you the desires of your heart.
Comment.
Yesterday we looked at the first two verses of this Psalm that went like this,
1 Do not fret because of evildoers, Nor be envious of the workers of iniquity.
2 For they shall soon be cut down like the grass, And wither as the green herb.
Today’s verses are connected but have a different focus. Yesterday was about not fretting or being envious if we would but take the long view of those whose lives will have a very nasty ending. Today is almost a ‘how-to’ avoid fretting and envy by Trusting in the Lord, Dwelling in His land while Delighting yourself in the Lord.
The how-to consists of Trusting in the Lord and doing good instead of worrying and envying. David’s guidance consists of simply trusting God and doing good for His glory. It is amazing how quickly we can become sidetracked from the simple work of trusting God and doing good. Finding time to look at the seeming prosperity of the wicked is one way we are often sidetracked.
Of course, we are also to Dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness: David advised the men and women of God to put aside both worry and envy by appreciating the blessings God gives day in and day out. God provided Israel land and His faithfulness provided sustenance as important as food every day. We cannot forget David’s direction to Delight yourself also in the Lord for it is so easy spend time in worry and in envy while neglecting to delight – savor – enjoy the actual blessings of God in our individual lives.
Then there is the final part of verse four, And He shall give you the desires of your heart. This is often take out of context as it is not a stand alone statement. It follows the directions to 1) Trust in the Lord, and do good; 2) Dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness, and 3) Delight yourself also in the Lord. For someone following those directions this is a wonderful promise as one who truly delights in the Lord will find his or her heart and desires changed, realigned with God’s own good desires for his or her life. Consequently, we see David is providing great advice in finding delight in God which is a means to a happy and satisfied life while trusting in the Lord.
Prayer: Heavenly Father, Lead me trust in You so much that I do good dwelling in Your will, basking in Your faithfulness. Help me to delight in all that You provide as You give me so much that I desire so that I may serve You. – In Jesus’ Name. Amen.
RileyD, nwJ
Riley D. Driver – Pastor
Calvary Chapel of Dayton
in Beavercreek