It was good for me to be afflicted so that I might learn your decrees.
Psalm 119:71
In today’s Scripture, the psalmist offers an honest reflection. “It was good for me to be afflicted,” he wrote, “so that I might learn your decrees.” He was looking back on a painful season in his life, when he faced real hardship and suffering. Later, however, he realized it was in those very days that he turned to God with all his heart and dug into the Word of God as never before. Suffering has that effect on some. Instead of turning away from God in bitterness, they fall into His arms and cling to His promises.
The point is, you don’t have to wait for some life-altering injury or personal tragedy to drive you into the pages of your Bible. It’s wide open to you right now! All of the comfort, perspective, and unquenchable hope waits for your discovery. And the Holy Spirit Himself will come alongside to make God’s truth come alive in your understanding.
Lord, I’m thankful for the afflictions that have welded my heart to Your promises and precepts. What if there had been nowhere to turn? What if I’d only had my own resources, my own wisdom, to rely on? How lost I would have been! Praise You for friends, mentors, teachers, and pastors who have pointed me to truths that shape my life.
