Psalm 119:159 I Love the Book

See how I love your precepts;
 preserve my life, Lord, in accordance with your love.
Psalm 119:159

Like David, I love God's precepts.

I love the Word the way I love other books that are my favorites. My favorite books are the ones that draw me into the world of the story told in the book.

I love the westerns of Louis L'Amour, in part because they pull me into the world of the Old West. I once took a vacation with  my family to central Kansas because my wife has relatives who live there. More than once during that week I drove off into the middle of the rolling plains and sat in the middle of a field surrounded by the native tall grasses. I read one of L'Amours novels set in that part of Kansas. Reading his description of riding across the plains on a horse, part of a cattle drive, I could easily picture myself right in the middle of the action.

When I read the Bible I like to use my imagination. When I read about David tending his sheep and playing songs to God on his stringed instrument, I can picture myself doing that very thing, only with my Alvarez guitar. I can even picture tending sheep because I've chased a few of my father-in-law's sheep over the years.

But even more than imagining myself into the action, I can live out the actions recommended by the Word. When I read Psalm 119, I can imagine David is writing directly to me. I can stop in the middle of reading and let my mind organize David's thoughts into a plan of action of my own. David's life becomes my life.

Which leads into another way that I love God's precepts. I love how it provides a window for me to see God's heart. It also provides a window into how David became a man after's God's own heart. And it provides practical guidelines for how I can live a life of joy and adventure.

When I read the Word I absorb God's love for me as expressed in His precepts. His Word lights a flame deep in my heart, to empower me to live a life filled with God's glory.