Her books include Women of the Word and None Like Him. Wilkin is an author and Bible teacher from Dallas. Right love of God leads to right love of self and neighbor. When I put my sin to death, my neighbor benefits. Healthy human relationships are predicated on honoring one another as image-bearers rather than worshiping or demanding worship from one another. God reads my sins and weaknesses perfectly, and I should ask him to keep doing that. But I was surprised to connect the end of the psalm to the beginning, which asks that God continue searching and knowing, testing me, regarding my anxious thoughts and offensive ways. Initially, I viewed Psalm 139 as God showing interest in all that made me special. In times of difficulty, we tend to look inward or to another person or a created thing for help. I want my adoration of God to result in an abhorrence of sin. I want to be the same: “Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature” (Col. His worshipful response to meditating on the limitlessness of God is a desire to slay what opposes God. "See if there is any offensive way in me” (vv. 139:23).Īs a young, overwhelmed mom, growing in my awareness of my own limits, I needed a vision of a transcendent God to reorient me. “Search me, God, and know my heart test me and know my anxious thoughts” (Ps.
Image: Shaun Menary Photography / Courtesy of Jen Wilkin Her books include The Dream of You and Ready to Rise. Saxton is a speaker, leadership coach, and co-host of the podcast Lead Stories. Would I go to extraordinary lengths so my friends could encounter peace, hope, and love? 35–36) even though initially he’d avoided the crowd to get some rest. Now, this passage reminds me of God’s tender kindness, the extraordinary lengths he went to for his friends in need, and how he transformed their lives. God not only speaks to us through the storms of life, but he also meets with us and speaks to us in the heart of the storm, when we’re at the end of ourselves and all hope is gone.Īs a child, I was stunned by the power of God. I am challenged to walk on Jesus’ words to me amid life’s storms, even if they don’t make sense. When Peter stepped out of the boat before the storm was still, he walked on the words Jesus said to him. I read this passage multiple times a day for over a week. The rise of the pandemic was like watching a storm brewing: Relatives around the world shared their stories, school was canceled, and my work was canceled or postponed. It resonated strongly with me when I realized COVID-19 would change our lives. “Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus” (Matt. Image: Melissa Zaldivar / Courtesy of Jo Saxton
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