Psalm 119:123 Free Range

Cattle should not be in the middle of the road.

I realize that in some parts of the world, including some parts of this country, it's not all that uncommon to find a rancher taking a herd of cattle or sheep down a road. It's a generally accepted practice and drivers are used to waiting for the road to clear.

But where I live, coming upon livestock in the road is neither expected nor accepted. It's obvious something is wrong if a cow is in the road.

Most recently I came across chickens wandering about on a street in a residential neighborhood here in Columbia. I had seen chickens in this family's yard before, behind a fence, but to come upon them in the road was not good.

The chickens, however, were enjoying themselves. They were doing what chickens do, which is to wander about wherever they can. They were expressing their chosen identity as free-range chickens.

I've no doubt the owners of this flock have a different concept of what chickens are supposed to do. Chickens aren't supposed to wander into the city street, free range or not. It's not good for the chickens and not representative of the owners' intent for their chickens.

My eyes fail, looking for your salvation, looking for your righteous promise.

Psalm 119:123

God created all of us to have free will. It's up to us to choose whether to be his servants or not.

Some of us, though, think of ourselves as free-range servants. Our personal definition of righteousness is different than God's. We grab hold of the freedom He offers and start making up our own rules of what a servant of God is supposed to be and do.

And then we find ourselves in places both unexpected and unacceptable.

Do you ever find yourself way too preoccupied with the ways other people are falling short of your definition of righteousness?

Are you spending too much time in a whirlpool of self-recrimination, obsessed with guilt (either real or imagined) over every little thing?

Do you linger too long in the past, unable to forgive others - or yourself?

Are you wandering about, trying to find salvation and acceptance in clinging to the right opinions rather than righteousness?

The righteous servant of God finds their true home in the righteous promises of God.