Psalm 5:7-8 - January 30, 2009

Ps 5:7-8 “But I, by your great mercy, will come into your house; in reverence will I bow down toward your holy temple. 8 Lead me, O LORD, in your righteousness because of my enemies — make straight your way before me.” NIV

In his mercy God draws us. Jesus declares in John 6:44 "No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him…” Without the Holy Spirit calling us we cannot come. This is reflected in the desires of your heart. The very fact that you desire God is evidence of his mercy touching your heart. This knowledge should produce an abundance of good fruit in the form of both thanksgiving and reverence as we understand that it is God’s mercy that has enabled us to come into his holy place.
A heart of reverence is a precious gift from God. The ability to appreciate God’s worth and to live in a genuine, healthy fear of the Lord is a precious treasure. This heart leads me into the presence of God with a right spirit so that I may come to God bringing him the praise that he is due from a heart that understands the difference between the weak life that I bring as an offering and the graciousness of a perfect, pure and powerful God who has chosen to welcome me into his presence.
From this place of reverence we can ask with certainty for the leading of the Lord into his perfect will. A heart in right order can expect God. We can be assured that he desires to direct our steps, deliver us from evil and lead us into his many great and precious promises. He desires to lead us in the straight-way. Too often it is our own heart condition that leaves us vulnerable to the enemy and causes us to fall into paths that are not straight but are distractions from the directions that God has for us.