Treasure Hunt

"Skilful and godly Wisdom is more precious than rubies; and nothing you can wish for is to be compared to her." Proverbs 3:15

I have discovered treasure!  Not just any treasure, I found the PRINCIPLE treasure of all treasures that is guaranteed to KEEP a person ENRICHED, every single day, for as long as they draw breath!

It's the WISDOM OF GOD, and the more I dig into this treasure, the more wealth I discover, and it makes me want to burst with excitement and joy!  I know it will keep me ahead in all God has for me and above every challenge and obstacle that comes my way!   

I feel a little like the person who was inspired to write Psalm 103:2, who wrote, "Bless (affectionately, gratefully praise) the Lord, O my soul, and forget not [one of] all His benefits—....".   The Word of God, which IS HIS WISDOM, has ENDLESS BENEFITS when we give ourselves to it and let it live richly in our hearts.  That's what Colossians 3:16 says, "Let the word [spoken by] Christ (the Messiah) have its HOME [IN YOUR HEARTS AND MINDS ] and DWELL IN YOU IN [all its] RICHNESS ."

YOUR WORD IS A LIGHT UNTO MY PATH 

One of the many benefits of the Wisdom of God, is its ability to shine light on our path of life.  In fact, it's all the light we will ever need, especially when we charter new ground, or need direction where there just seems to be no possible way to go.  Where others see a blank wall of impossibility, God shows us a highway of opportunity!  What really impresses me, is  how God's Wisdom isn't just there for the BIG decisions, it's a light for every choice we make from the moment we wake in the morning, till we lay our heads down at night.  Actually, even in the wee hours of the morning, when our minds are assaulted with fearful thoughts, God's wisdom teaches us to shut the door to those voices and immediately find our shelter in Him.  

JOIN THE TREASURE HUNT!

Now, I have found Psalm 119 to be a wonderful contribution to the treasure of God's Word. It's overflowing with exquisite wealth for our every day lives.  

I began to feast my heart and mind on it's jewels, and found its wisdom delightful!  It is a rather lengthy Psalm, overflowing with riches.  So,  this letter alone will never be able to contain all the discoveries I've found.  Instead, I thought I could entice you, dear reader, to find one specific gem amongst its many, and share what the Holy Spirit has revealed to you about it.  I would just love to hear what He imparts to you.  Most importantly, it's important that you record what He tells you, because it not only solidifies and establishes itself more securely inside you when you do so, it becomes a point of reference for the future - when you need to be reminded of its truth.  If you don't mind sharing, I'd love to read it too, just post it on the blog site, under this letter.  

My prayer, is that the Holy Spirit - the author of this treasure, will reveal its magnificence to you and cause it to dwell in your heart and produce the finest, most exquisite character and nature in you, a perfect reflection of the person of Jesus. 

WHERE TO BEGIN?

You can, of course, start anywhere you like, and use any translation you fancy.   My favourite is the Amplified version, and I'm going to start at the very beginning, just to whet your appetite and get you hooked into digging deeper and further into this glorious Psalm yourself.  

YOUR WORD IS YOUR WILL REVEALED TO MY HEART, AND I DEPEND ON IT.

Psalm 119:1, "BLESSED (HAPPY, fortunate, to be envied) are the undefiled (the upright, truly sincere, and blameless) in the way [of THE REVEALED WILL of God], who walk (order their conduct and conversation) in the law of the Lord (the whole of God’s REVEALED WILL).  Blessed (happy, fortunate, to be envied) are they who keep His testimonies, and who SEEK, INQUIRE for and of Him and CRAVE Him with the whole heart."

So, this is what was on my heart when I dug a little deeper into this treasure:  I really believe that being truly sincere about living each moment in our day- God's way, will cause us to be blessed and favoured beyond measure.  But this way of life isn't a mechanical or religious ritual, based on performance or fear of failing to meet the mark.  Instead, it's knowing that to walk in God's perfect, REVEALED WILL, has everything to do with our DEPENDENCE on Him.  To SEEK Him, INQUIRE of Him and CRAVE Him with the WHOLE HEART.

This reminds me of Deuteronomy 30:19 & 20, where it says, "...therefore CHOOSE LIFE , that you and your descendants may live, and may LOVE the Lord your God, OBEY His voice, and CLING to Him. For He is your life and the length of your days, that you may dwell in the land which the Lord swore to give to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob."

As we hold fast to the Lord, and look into His Word, through His eyes, with His perspective, He REVEALS its truth to us.  Now it moves from being instructions or impressive ideas, to intimate, personal training and guiding of our hearts and attitudes. UNDERSTANDING His ways begins when our hearts and attitudes are influenced by His Words, and that brings change in our actions.  Instead of reacting to circumstances, or doing things our way, we willingly, do things His way (obedience).

And that's where HIS WILL becomes IMPRINTED on our HEARTS.  It's not just wise teachings but something we have made our own, tested and proven to be true. 

OBEYING God's REVEALED will, not just causes us to live in His promises, it has the power to save us from all doubt and fear, and KEEPS us in a place of favour and blessing.  James 1:21-22 says it this way, "So get rid of all uncleanness and the rampant outgrowth of wickedness, and in a humble (gentle, modest) spirit RECEIVE and WELCOME the WORD which IMPLANTED and ROOTED [in your HEARTS] contains the POWER to SAVE your SOULS.  But BE  DOERS of the WORD [obey the message], and not merely listeners to it, betraying yourselves [into deception by reasoning contrary to the Truth]."

So, this is how God's will becomes a natural way for us to live.  We WELCOME and RECEIVE it into our hearts, and allow it to INFLUENCE our attitudes, words and actions - which are tell-tale signs of what is dominating our hearts.  Then, we begin to EXPERIENCE the BENEFITS of the Word we have given ourselves willingly, and wholeheartedly to. That's how we LIVE blessed and ENRICHED, one glorious day at a time.

Enjoy your treasure hunt....and share your precious jewels with us....happy digging!

Much love,

Jenny