Psalm 26

Scripture 

Psalm 26: 1-3

Test me, Lord, and try me, examine my heart and my mind; for I have always been mindful of your unfailing love and have lived in reliance on your faithfulness.

Observation-What does it say?

This is another Psalm from King David. King David confidently told the Lord to test Him and examine his heart and mind to see if there was any wickedness in him, for he had been leading a blameless life.

Understanding-What does it mean?

We can learn a lot from King David. I know that I do.

Besides Deborah in the book of Judges and the Apostle Paul in the New Testament, King David is one of my favorite Biblical characters! I love how he is a musician; I love his humble story of how the Lord appointed him as King; I love how he hired skilled musicians for the Temple and assigned them their duties by asking the Lord what He wanted (I Chronicles 25:7), and I love that even in his sins/moral failure as king, he didn’t allow that mistake to define him. He took the consequence of his son’s death humbly, repented, remained blameless before God and was a man after His heart, just like when he first started/was chosen.

Through testing and hard seasons in King David’s life, He relied completely on the Lord to deliver Him, not man. As a result, God’s grace and favor was on His life, even through difficult circumstances that were beyond his control.

Life Application

During seasons of testing, are we confidently relying on Christ’s unfailing love and faithfulness towards us?

If you had to grade yourself on how you went through this past year (and continuing on) with everything from Covid, to home life, to social issues and unrest, to the 2020 election, and even grief, what grade would you give yourself? How is the Holy Spirit prompting you to be more dependent on Christ’s love, faithfulness and control through circumstances outside of our control? If you feel led to share, please do so in the comments section below.

For me, I know the Holy Spirit is teaching me how to be more self controlled, an initiator of peace with my brothers and sisters in Christ, a better listener of others’ concerns/opinions instead of venting my own, and to put my WHOLE faith, hope and trust in His perfect love, faithfulness, strength and providence alone. My husband’s favorite verse, which closes out this post perfectly is Proverbs 3:5 NIV- “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.” 

-Michelle Gaddi