“You make known to me the path of life; in your presence, there is fullness of joy.” (Psalm 16:11:)
I don’t like being told what to do. Being commanded to do just about anything, at best, annoys me. (Usually, it makes me downright angry and resentful, so I start looking for opportunities to rebel.) This means that for the longest time, when I read verses like Psalm 119:47, which says, “for I find my delight in your commandments, which I love,” I had no idea what to do with it. I actually thought David, the Psalmist, might just be crazy.
It was actually another Psalm that helped me see why David was right (obviously), and I was so wrong. Psalm 16:11 says, “You make known to me the path of life; in your presence, there is fullness of joy.” What is this path of life that God shows us? It is living according to his commandments, and that’s where true, deep, fulfilled life is found.
On top of that, it is the path that leads directly to God’s presence, where there is fullness of joy. So, of course, there is a deep delight in God’s commands when we realize they draw us close to Him and his steadfast love.
My heart still bucks against commands. But I see now that following them is actually walking deeper into joy and closer to the heart of God who loves me.
I originally wrote this post for my church, Immanuel Nashville, in our Daily Pulse email. If you want encouragement from God’s word delivered Monday thru Friday to your inbox, I encourage you to subscribe!
