Day 3 – Psalm 16:11

You will make known to me the path of life;

In Your presence is fullness of joy;

In Your right hand there are pleasures forever.^[1]

I must admit just how often I tend to believe that I have the best path or, at least, a better path than that which I find in the Word of God. Intellectually I realize that God always knows what is best for me, but in my flesh my initial reaction is to seek my own path. It is because my vision is obscured, and I am unable to see clearly. I am one of the 60% of the population that wears glasses or contacts. When my glasses get dirty, which they always seem to be, it is difficult to see. I am able to see but the spots and the smears distract me enough to make it difficult to see clearly. So too, there are abundant distractions preventing us from recognizing the highest and best God offers us. The psalmist gives praise to God and in the process informs us that it is God who shows us the paths in life we should follow. Then, as if anticipating any objection, tells us why His path, God’s path, is best, because in His presence we will find fullness of joy and eternal pleasures in His right hand. That is what I want, and I cannot provide it for myself. I will, therefore, place my trust and confidence in Him, and make certain He remains the object of my focus. My prayer for you is that your desire and aim will be the same.

Holy God, You are so gracious and merciful to us. You never cease showing us the right path to follow no matter how often we follow our own. Forgive us, Lord, for ignoring and neglecting You direction. Forgive us for seeking our own way. You alone know the things that obscure our way and distract us from our purpose. Help us to focus more consistently and when we are distracted, help us to take the measures to correct our vision. Amen.

^[1] New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update (La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation, 1995), Ps 16:11.