Search Me

December 11

Jonah 3-4

Psalm 139:19-24

Proverbs 29:15-17

Revelation 5

Search Me

“Search me, O God, and know my heart; try me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me and lead me in the way everlasting.”  Psalm 139:23-24 LSB

Psalm 139 is a beautiful poem about the nearness of God.  He knows our thoughts before we think them.  He created us inside our mother’s womb knitting us together bone by bone and ligament by ligament.  He saw our unformed bodies and then ordained every day we would have on this Earth.  We cannot hide from Him or go anywhere outside of His presence.  He is with us every moment and is familiar with all our ways.   David found comfort in the presence of God in his life as he fled from his enemies and hid in the wilderness, but he asked God why he hadn’t slain those who are seeking to kill him.  He wasn’t doubting God’s ability or His care for him, he just wondered why God had not rescued him yet.  In thinking over the reasons God might not have answered, he considered the possibility that he had sin in his heart or that he had done something wrong.  David was humble and had an intimate relationship with God.  While sin is certainly not always the reason for seemingly unanswered prayers, it is a possibility.  We know from reading I Samuel that God was at work in David’s life and in King Saul’s life during this whole time.  He was preparing David to be king and He was working out all the events and circumstances to make that happen at the perfect time.  But during those lonely years in the wilderness, David could not see what God was doing and understandably questioned God’s timing.  Instead of getting angry or giving up, David turned to God.  This psalm is an example for us to follow when we are in a season of waiting. 

Humbly turning to God with our questions is always the best place to start.  David had already acknowledged that God knew him better than he knew himself.  He wasn’t so much asking God to search his heart because he knew God had already done that.  What he was asking was for God to show him what was in his heart.  He wanted God to examine his heart, his motives, and his emotions and reveal them to him.  He invited God to inspect his worries and anxieties so that God could give him peace and clarity about them.  And then he asked that God show him anything in his heart that was not pleasing to Him and to lead him in the right path forward.  David knew that God’s perspective was much better than his and he wanted to be able to see what was happening from God’s perspective.  We have all been at this place in our lives.  Hopefully, we haven’t been hiding from someone who wanted to kill us, but we have had and probably will face moments in the future when we feel all alone and confused, wondering why God hasn’t shown up yet and trying desperately to figure out what we need to do next.  David models for us how to turn to God and allow Him to lead us in the way everlasting.