Sometimes we go through a hard time of testing or difficulty and ask, "How can any good come out of this mess?"
"It was good for me to be afflicted so that I might learn your decrees." Psalm 119:71
IT WAS GOOD
The author of this Bible verse makes a declaration, he affirms, "It was good..." He had some trial, and he experienced that test turned out for his good. He affirms it as a truth. He appraised what happened and he decided it was “good.”
AFFLICTION
Affliction is severe distress, almost to the limits of endurance. We all face grief at one time or another, and like him, we may find God’s good purpose in the end.
DECREES
The Psalmist learned the "decrees" or the teachings of The Almighty. He didn't find comfort in some philosophy or idea developed by professors, but he found comfort in God’s Word. God reveals himself in his Word, the Bible.
No doubt the psalmist knew the Commandments and the rules of his faith, but what he learned was more than words recited back to a teacher. Knowing something in your head is not the same as learning through experience.
This is God’s will for us who have come to Him, we are in a relationship with God, and a relationship is not a bunch of rules but interactions and experiences that lead us to know the person.
A GOOD THING
Affliction will come and when it does we must be ready to learn from God. The psalmist does not say the affliction was resolved and everything was put back to the way it was before, but he does say he learned Gods decrees and it was a “good” thing.
"It was good for me to be afflicted so that I might learn your decrees." Psalm 119:71
IT WAS GOOD
The author of this Bible verse makes a declaration, he affirms, "It was good..." He had some trial, and he experienced that test turned out for his good. He affirms it as a truth. He appraised what happened and he decided it was “good.”
AFFLICTION
Affliction is severe distress, almost to the limits of endurance. We all face grief at one time or another, and like him, we may find God’s good purpose in the end.
DECREES
The Psalmist learned the "decrees" or the teachings of The Almighty. He didn't find comfort in some philosophy or idea developed by professors, but he found comfort in God’s Word. God reveals himself in his Word, the Bible.
No doubt the psalmist knew the Commandments and the rules of his faith, but what he learned was more than words recited back to a teacher. Knowing something in your head is not the same as learning through experience.
This is God’s will for us who have come to Him, we are in a relationship with God, and a relationship is not a bunch of rules but interactions and experiences that lead us to know the person.
A GOOD THING
Affliction will come and when it does we must be ready to learn from God. The psalmist does not say the affliction was resolved and everything was put back to the way it was before, but he does say he learned Gods decrees and it was a “good” thing.
© Adron 12/1/9
