Under Attack, Look to the Joy of the LORD

In this world I am under attack. I am lead off the path of light and truth away from the LORD and into the darkness.

“¹⁰⁷I am severely afflicted;…

¹¹⁰The wicked have laid a snare for me,”

— Psalm 119:107a & 110a (ESV)

There are a lot of things in this world that are against me, although I will not know it really until I give way to the deception and stray from the path the LORD has for me in to His joy. I am reminded of the phrase, “the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence”. I am not sure who originated that phrase, but it is true. As I look out off the path of the joy of the LORD, I see those out there that seem to be living the life of great things and it is natural as a human to want to experience those things. And then I get there. I experience that fun and excitement, for the moment, only to realize that the moment fades quickly and the fun with it, where I find myself wandering further away as I continue to look for the next thing. Don’t get me wrong, fun and excitement are nice to experience, but the path of the joy of the LORD is where I have to experience those.

All of that is the attack of the evil one. I am, as noted in the verses above, afflicted and the evil one is lying in wait for me. It is all just a distraction from that which is true joy, the life according to the will of the LORD. The LORD is forever. He is the “lamp to my feet and a light to my path”– see below.

“¹⁰⁵Your word is a lamp to my feet

and a light to my path.

¹¹¹Your testimonies are my heritage forever,

for they are the joy of my heart.

¹¹²I incline my heart to perform your statutes

forever, to the end.”

— Psalm 119:105 & 111-112 (ESV)

It is important that I embrace the joy of the LORD on the path that He has provided for me. I may see all of that fun and excitement that others are experiencing and feel compelled to join in, but I must take pause. Those may be folks on their path with the LORD and they are experiencing the joy of the LORD that He has provided for them, yet it is for them and not for me. I may wander over and in the moment experience the fun and excitement, but I will then find myself looking to another for more fun and excitement. I may even look back at the path I came from and see a great amount of fun and excitement there and wonder why I even left my path in the first place as it seems so wonderful now that I am looking back.

I have to be content with the path that the LORD has provided for me. I will be afflicted and attacked and the evil one will have a trap waiting for me constantly. I have to know it and do what I can to stay on the path. The joy of the LORD will give me more that any moment of fun and excitement, and that is where I should spend my time.

What fun and excitement are you experiencing? Are you looking for that off the path of the joy of the LORD? Remember the evil one is coming for you, what if you looked to the LORD and the path He has for you for joy in your life instead?