Understanding = A Whole Hearted Life For God!

Understanding = A Whole Hearted Life For God!
Psalm 119:34

In 2003 I delivered my first message from the pulpit of my home church for a Youth Explosion service. This particular message changed my life forever when God revealed something that has never left my spirit. The theme was "Transformed to Transform" and the scriptural reference was Romans 12:1-2.

Verse 2 read,

"And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God."

During my study time I asked God about renewing my mind. I asked him how I was supposed to renew my mind in order to experience the transformation. He clearly said, "You renew your mind through the constant study, constant meditation and constant application of God’s word." WOW! What a powerful revelation huh? You can’t apply what is not already in you and nothing can become apart of your way of life until you have spent enough time studying and understanding the concept resulting in APLLICATION of what you have studied.

Psalm 119:34 says,

"Give me understanding, and I shall keep thy law; yea, I shall observe it with my whole heart."

The entire division of Psalm 119 is about wanting to please God and doing what it takes to make him happy. It is hard to give your all to something or someone when you don’t understand why you should put forth the effort. For example, if you never knew that brushing your teeth regularly helps keep your teeth healthy would you continue to brush them everyday? For most people they would stop brushing all together. The same is true with God and his word … if we didn’t know that there were blessing connected to being obedient to God’s word many believers wouldn’t even take the time to read let alone apply the things that God says. On the other hand, there are MANY believers who don’t even understand that God tells us to do things differently than we have been because he’s trying to get us to be blessed.

Point 1: "Give me Understanding"

In verse 34 of this 119th Psalm, the Psalmist says, "Give me understanding." "Understanding" means "comprehension" or "the power to make experience intelligible by applying concepts and categories" according to the dictionary. In other words, you show that you understand by applying what you learn. This may not sound too hard but what the Psalmist is really saying is "God allow me to experience what you are trying to say to me so I can understand what you mean better." Think it not strange when you ask God to make certain things clear and all hell breaks loose… it’s what you asked for! There is a saying, "Be careful what you ask for" and I am learning why this is a common saying because depending on what you’re asking for determines what you will have to go through to get it. I’m not trying to scare you ... I am simply trying to get you to see that when you ask God for ANYTHING you better be serious in your asking.

Point 2: "…I shall keep thy law"

The Psalmist goes on to say that he will keep the law once he understands. In my short 27 years on this earth I have come to appreciate and not mind doing certain things because of the experiences I’ve had at different periods of life because I’ve found that they are beneficial not only me but to others as well. I’ve experienced a lot of different events and situations in my life that have shaped me into what you see today. From being ignored in a talent show in 4th grade that ruined my self-confidence for a long time … all the way to running in a marathon that only 1% of the population of the world ever finish, all of these things have in some way motivated me to keep pushing because something is being added to my character as I go through each process. I think this is what the Psalmist was getting at in the next part of this verse. Once the understanding of the benefits are there it’s a little bit (Note I said a LITTLE BIT … not completely … it will still be a struggle until you reach the end) easier to endure the pressure of walking through the process to getting what God wants for us to have.

Point 3: "… I shall observe it with my whole heart."

Keeping God’s law is not the most exciting all the time but one thing that holds true is the fact that once you begin to experience the benefits of living for God you can’t help but give your all for God because you will NEVER … EVER be disappointed. The word "observe" is used in this verse but its meaning is different from what we normally think when we see it. It means, "to conform one’s action or practice to." The reason that the Psalmist asks for understanding in the beginning is because he recognizes that there are certain things that he is going to have to change in order to even begin to keep God’s law. It is absolutely insane to think that you will be able to do things the same and experience God’s greatness in your life, it does not work like that. Living for God, as Romans 12:2 says, requires that we conform to the things of God. As you conform to God, you allow him to take control of your life as a result EVERYTHING changes and God’s character becomes apart of you resulting in him using all of you to bring Glory to his name and winning others to Christ.

God wants us to be AWESOME people in him but if we don’t understand that we will never get there. We must ask for understanding so that we might learn to LIVE in the favor, blessings and awesomeness of God. It’s not enough to come to church on Sunday and hear the word only to leave and go back to life as usual. It is time that we ignite the fire within to not only know God but understand what he wants us to do in order to experience what he has for each of us. Understanding brings about a life that is WHOLE HEARTEDLY lived for God!

© Copyright LaTrisha E. Milton March 26, 2008