A man after My heart, who will do all My will.

Psalm 37:1-11 from the daily reading in the One Year Bible

Do not get upset because of evildoers,
Do not be envious of wrongdoers.
² For they will wither quickly like the grass,
And decay like the green plants.
³ Trust in the Lord and do good;
Live in the land and cultivate faithfulness.
⁴ Delight yourself in the Lord;
And He will give you the desires of your heart.
⁵ Commit your way to the Lord,
Trust also in Him, and He will do it.
⁶ He will bring out your righteousness as the light,
And your judgment as the noonday.

⁷ Rest in the Lord and wait patiently for Him;
Do not get upset because of one who is successful in his way,
Because of the person who carries out wicked schemes.
⁸ Cease from anger and abandon wrath;
Do not get upset; it leads only to evildoing.
⁹ For evildoers will be eliminated,
But those who wait for the Lord, they will inherit the land.
¹⁰ Yet a little while and the wicked person will be no more;
And you will look carefully for his place and he will not be there.
¹¹ But the humble will inherit the land
And will delight themselves in abundant prosperity.

I think it is important, any time we read and meditate on the words of David, the psalmist, that we keep in mind what it says in Acts 13:22, He (God) raised up David to be their king, concerning whom He also testified and said, ‘I have found David, the son of Jesse, a man after My heart, who will do all My will.’  When we read the words of David, we get a glimpse into the heart of God. 

The psalmist says: Do not get upset because of evildoers, Do not be envious of wrongdoers. For they will wither quickly like the grass, And decay like the green plants. Trust in the Lord and do good; Live in the land and cultivate faithfulness. Delight yourself in the Lord; And He will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord, Trust also in Him, and He will do it. He will bring out your righteousness as the light, And your judgment as the noonday.  It is God’s heart then that we would not focus on those who do evil, but rather that we delight in Him. 2 Corinthians 3:18 says: We all, with unveiled faces, looking as in a mirror at the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit.  We tend to become more like that which we behold or focus on. If we focus on evil and darkness, we ourselves will tend to become more evil and dark. If we focus on God; if we delight in Him, we will tend to become more like Him. That He gives us our hearts desires is not as much that we get all the things we want, as it is that we recognize that He is all that we need. Psalm 100:5 says: The Lord is good; His lovingkindness is everlasting And His faithfulness to all generations. God’s faithfulness is part of His character. It is unchanging and enduring. In Deuteronomy 31:6 God  says: “The LORD your God, He is the One who goes with you. He will not leave you nor forsake you.”  Our faithfulness on the other hand is not part of our natural character. We need to cultivate our faithfulness; to work at it daily. As we live in the land, in the world, we need to abide in Him, in the heavenly realm. 

The psalmist says: Rest in the Lord and wait patiently for Him; Do not get upset because of one who is successful in his way, Because of the person who carries out wicked schemes. Our resting in the Lord is not a rest of slumber. In Matthew 11:28-29 Jesus says: “Come to Me, all who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.”  We rest in the Lord even as we walk and work with Him. If we are struggling and striving it is a sign that we are not yoked to Him. Instead, perhaps like Saul, we are kicking against the goads. (Acts 26:14) We wait patiently recognizing that God is not limited by or locked into finite time, that with the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years like one day. (2 Peter 3:8) Our waiting though is with an expectation of what God will do. He already know the outcome. In Jeremiah 29:11 He says: I know the plans that I have for you, plans for prosperity and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. 

The psalmist says: Cease from anger and abandon wrath; Do not get upset; it leads only to evildoing. For evildoers will be eliminated, But those who wait for the Lord, they will inherit the land. Yet a little while and the wicked person will be no more; And you will look carefully for his place and he will not be there. But the humble will inherit the land And will delight themselves in abundant prosperity.  Romans 12:21 says: Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.  When we engage with those who are evil in this natural realm, we are overcome by evil. Instead, we need to overcome what is evil by the goodness of the heavenly realm. In John 16:33 Jesus says: “These things I have spoken to you so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world.” 

Romans 8:15-17 says: You have received a spirit of adoption as sons and daughters by which we cry out, “Abba! Father!” The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him.   Amen.