Sunday, April 15, 2012

Devotions - Psalm 119:133


As part of my Student-Teaching II experience at Concordia, I have the opportunity to teach an 8th grade religion class.
One of the assignments I gave them was that each would compose a devotion and present it.  Prior to the first student devotion, I was presenting my own.  And I kinda feel like sharing some of them.
Here's the first:

Compass:
Direct my footsteps according to your word; let no sin rule over me.
Psalm 119:133

How many of us have ever gotten lost?
Being lost is an experience we all have had from time to time.  A group of lost friends on a road trip is a classic set-up for a comedy, often leading to an adventure of discovery.  A small child who gets lost in a crowded store is a nightmare scenario for many parents, and kids.  It is in time like these that people seek out direction.
When my wife and I were getting ready for our camping trip last year, I bought a compass.  The instructions provided described how to use the compass to find a bearing: a direction to a specific object.  Specifically, it is the angle between the line I am traveling on, and north. Growing up I never was part of the boy scouts, nor did I go camping much, so I am still learning how to use this tool.
A lot of times people feel lost in their lives.  They complain that there is not a “guide book” with all the answers.  In the Psalms, we here a call for God to “navigate” us in life.  The writer realized who could guide him, and how that guidance is provided.  Through God’s Word, the Bible, we can find direction.  But sometimes those around us, and even ourselves, need training in how to use this “instrument of navigation.”
That’s why Christian education is so important.  And that’s why we are here: to learn how to use God’s Word in our lives.

Father, we ask for your direction in our lives and in our studies.  Help us to admit when we feel lost, and give us the strength to ask for guidance.  Help us to lead people to the right answers, at the right time.  And in all we do, to point to You.  Amen.

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