1 Joyful are people of integrity,
who follow the instructions of the Lord.
2 Joyful are those who obey his laws
and search for him with all their hearts.
3 They do not compromise with evil,
and they walk only in his paths.
4 You have charged us
to keep your commandments carefully.
5 Oh, that my actions would consistently
reflect your decrees!
6 Then I will not be ashamed
when I compare my life with your commands.
7 As I learn your righteous regulations,
I will thank you by living as I should!
Just like anything else in life, we find ourselves measuring all kinds of things, from electric power to gallons of gasoline. Psalm 119 is the longest chapter in the Bible. It is made up of 176 verses and is laid out in an acrostic pattern. The acrostic pattern in Psalm 119 has 22 units of 8 verses each. Each section is given a letter of the Hebrew alphabet, and each line in that section begins with that letter.
Everyone likes multiple-choice tests. The reason is you have a 25% chance of getting it right every time. Other types of tests, the ones where you write the problem down and answer it, give you a real possibility of getting the problem 100% wrong.
The first unit in Psalm 119 starts out with a multiple-choice checklist of a righteous person: Blessed are those who….
1) ways are blameless,
2) walk according to the law,
3) keep His statutes,
4) seek Him with all their heart,
5) do no wrong but follow His ways.
By now you’re like, “Great, straight A’s for Mr. or Mrs. Super Christian over here.” Verse 5 is for all of us. It says, “Oh, that my ways were steadfast in obeying your decrees!” Before you get the “talk to the hand” attitude, realize that even when Psalm 119 was written, people struggled to stay steadfast in walking with the Lord. You and your issues are not alone, nor are they new to God. Learning to walk with the Lord is a process. You don’t get up one morning and preach like Billy Graham or write books on leadership like John Maxwell. It is a process, one that requires your devotion every day to see progress.
Verse 7 is one of my favorites. It reads, “I will praise you with an upright heart as I learn your righteous laws.” God knows we are all learning, and we are all in different stages of learning. The key is to understand that if you want to get to know God, the first step is to praise Him. You don’t have to wear a choir robe and sing on stage while someone leads you in a song written in the 1700s. Read your Bible one chapter at a time every day to start off. Do the checklist 1–5 above every day while you learn the righteous ways of the Lord. Praise is not always singing, but make your actions and intentions praiseworthy to the Lord along with your time. He is waiting! The checklist is a group of action items you have to do, not a list of things to wait on. Get up and do it!
Prayer: Father, help us be blameless in our ways, walk according to your will, keep all of your statutes, seek you with all of our hearts, and do no wrong as we follow your ways. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Let It Go 
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