Psalm 16:2 “I said to the Lord, ‘You are my Lord; apart from you I have no good thing.’” (NIV)
No one can really know what another person is truly like unless as the Indians would say, “He walks a mile in their moccasins.” That is so true in life, and should prevent us from awkward remarks or hasty judgments applied without really knowing the person. Jesus tells the Pharisees this as they apply their worldly judgments to his ministry when he says in John 7:24: “Stop judging by mere appearances and make right judgment.” One has to experience someone or something before they can claim for themselves the assurance of that relationship. When you work with someone, trust someone, and share the good and bad with someone, you begin to understand and know that person.
In Psalm 16 we find David in deep need for the help and protection of his God, and the first verse of the psalm is a prayer for his protection as he takes refuge in God. These were not merely words for David; they were literally life and death experiences for him as he took refuge in God as King Saul stalked him across the countryside. As David depended upon God for his life, and developed the intimate assurance of God’s presence, power, protection, and provision for his life, he slowly came to the realization that God was his Lord and apart from God he had no good thing.
Here we have in our devotional text the truth that will help make our way if we will trust God with it:
- He is Lord of our lives, and
- He is the source of every good thing in this life.
When we really trust God with our lives, we will find that we have a God who blesses us with an inheritance, counsels and instructs us even subconsciously in our sleep, and stands at our right hand to help us with any foe. The outcome for any of us who seek the face of God is that he will direct us to the path of life for our lives (Psalm 16:11). The key for anyone who walks on this earth is the decision to seek God’s refuge in order to understand his overwhelming goodness and willingness to bless our lives abundantly. Why would we turn away to the scarcity and hardship of the world? Try the Lord for he is good and I urge you to test what David says about his life, that the boundary lines have fallen for him in pleasant places (Psalm 16:6). My friend, God will do the same for you.
FATHER, TODAY I FLEE FOR REFUGE INTO YOUR ARMS BECAUSE I KNOW APART FROM YOU I HAVE NO GOOD THING.
Article source: Mike White @ Summit church of Christ
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