Nothing Better

“I have seen an end of all perfection: but thy commandment is exceeding broad.” (Ps 119:96 AV)

This sounds an awful lot like Solomon.  He writes an entire book on the vanity of all that mankind can pursue.  He concludes that life’s pleasure and meaning can be found in simple obedience to the word of God.  His father, David, is perhaps the origin of this wisdom.  The meaning is similar above.  David has gotten all that he can out of life.  He has gotten everything that he ever wanted.  There was not any other ambition or desire he could possibly want.  Nothing satisfied.  Not completely.  The only source of continued satisfaction is the word of God.  To David, if you took everything away and he still had his Bible, he would be completely content.  The end of all things does not compare with what God can do by His wonderful word.

The times I cherish the most are the quiet times spent with the LORD.  Although we have these times every day, I am thinking about those times of significant fellowship unabated by normal life that seems to encroach on these times.  I wish  I could say they are common, but they are not.  Life is too hectic and responsibilities too great to have one complete day of nothing but divine fellowship. The kids and dog needs tending to.  The spouse needs attention.  The house needs repairs and the lawn needs to be mowed.  Church people are a constant draw for your attention.  They need encouragement, counsel, and challenge.  There are your own personal needs like preparing meals, doctor's appointments, or car repairs.  Life demands of us a great deal of time.  But there are those times when the world seems to leave you alone and God is the only one who has our attention.  There have been those times while sitting in a tent camper during a rain storm, sitting by a pond in a lawn chair, or in the car as the waves crash on the boulders below.  There are those times sitting in a pew while everyone else is at work.  Then there are those times spent in hospital chapels while our loved one is resting after surgery.  Times when God seems so near that you can touch Him. It is in those times you realize He is all you need.

It took a while, but David came to the conclusion his son would eventually deduce.  There is nothing better than to sit and listen to the voice of God as the Holy Spirit speaks to your heart through His word.  There is no place grander than a quiet place with God and God alone speaking directly to your spirit.  There is no sweeter place than a sublime spot away from the fray for a few hours in the day when God has our complete attention and the words of His book seem almost as real as an audible voice directly from heaven.  As I said, it may take some time to come to the same conclusion.  After we have pursued all we can and attained all that is available, we will look at it all and the one possession or experience that eclipses them all is that old Bible, sitting on the table, opened and waiting for our hungry eyes to ingest the presence of God.