LET THE GOOD DAYS ROLL
Psalm 34:9-14 NKJV
9 Oh, fear the Lord, you His saints!
There is no want to those who fear Him.
10 The young lions lack and suffer hunger;
But those who seek the Lord shall not lack any good thing.
11 Come, you children, listen to me;
I will teach you the fear of the Lord.
12 Who is the man who desires life,
And loves many days, that he may see good?
13 Keep your tongue from evil,
And your lips from speaking deceit.
14 Depart from evil and do good;
Seek peace and pursue it.
A disclaimer. I borrowed the title of this devotional from my Cajun friends. One of their favorite sayings is - let the good times roll. Only they say it in Cajun French, which sounds very cool. But this is where we veer off from my Southern Louisiana friends. I am pretty sure their concept of good times differs from what we see in our verses for today.
Another small fact. Psalms 34 is absolutely one of my top five psalms. It's one that I have memorized and often quote in the night if I am having trouble sleeping. It is such a great psalm.
David lays out for us some key components of what makes up good days—fear of the Lord and seeking the Lord. There is no want or lack to those who fear Him. And those who seek the Lord shall not lack for any good thing. Those are powerful statements that we must mix faith with. To have a reverence for God and to seek Him produces good things in our lives. Hebrews 11:6 says that we must believe that God is a rewarder to those who seek Him.
In verses 11-12, the psalmist says to those who listen, he will teach them the fear of the Lord. This leads to life and many days of seeing good. This psalm is chock full of good news—no lack, no want, life, and many days of seeing good. Biblically speaking, this is letting the good times roll.
David goes further in teaching the fear of the Lord. He shows us three areas to pay attention to: our words, our walk, and the pursuit of good relations with others.
Our words. Keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking deceit. Without going into great detail, evil can include slander, gossip, and words that tear others down. A great verse to reference is Ephesians 4:29, where Paul admonished the believers to let no corrupt word come out of their mouths, only words that minister grace and build up others. Words with no deceit will involve lies and things that contradict God's Word. It's a big topic.
Depart from evil and do good. Remember, we are teaching the fear of the Lord here. So, fear of the Lord is to depart from anything we know in our hearts to be wrong. Departing from anything we would have to repent for. And do good. Being a do-gooder is highly esteemed in God's Kingdom. This is how we roll, how we live our lives.
And we seek peace. I am working on the assumption that this is peace with others. But we could certainly add peace with God and not be out of line. We seek peace in our relationships and peace in our hearts. When we are walking in that inner peace, it is a good indication that we are on the right track.
Our words, our walk, and our relationships, when done in the fear of the Lord, produce the life and good days that the people crave. And it's right within our grasp.
PRAYER:
Lord, I purpose to seek You and walk in the fear and reverence of You. Please show me how I can grow in these areas of my life.