Scripture: Psalm 139:1-18 You have searched me, Lord,
and you know me.
You know when I sit and when I rise;
you perceive my thoughts from afar.
You discern my going out and my lying down;
you are familiar with all my ways.
Before a word is on my tongue
you, Lord, know it completely.
You hem me in behind and before,
and you lay your hand upon me.
Such knowledge is too wonderful for me,
too lofty for me to attain.
Where can I go from your Spirit?
Where can I flee from your presence?
If I go up to the heavens, you are there;
if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.
If I rise on the wings of the dawn,
if I settle on the far side of the sea,
even there your hand will guide me,
your right hand will hold me fast.
If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me
and the light become night around me,”
even the darkness will not be dark to you;
the night will shine like the day,
for darkness is as light to you.
For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful,
I know that full well.
My frame was not hidden from you
when I was made in the secret place,
when I was woven together in the depths of the earth.
Your eyes saw my unformed body;
all the days ordained for me were written in your book
before one of them came to be.
How precious to me are your thoughts, God!
How vast is the sum of them!
Were I to count them,
they would outnumber the grains of sand—
when I awake, I am still with you.
Devotion: Perhaps one of the most misunderstood attributes of God is His all-knowing nature. I know that I have certainly viewed this characteristic with fear before. It is a bit like the children’s song that says, “O be careful little eyes what you see. O be careful little eyes what you see. For the Father up above is looking down with love, so be careful little eyes what you see.” It is pretty easy to breeze past the words “looking down with love” and just focus on the warning of this song. That is often how we often think about God knowing everything. We assume that He is standing in heaven, looking over our shoulder, and giving us a judgmental look with everything that we do.
Let’s flip the script on this idea though. Jen Wilkin puts it this way in her book None Like Him, “Aware that he is witness to all we think, speak, and do, we learn to live circumspectly. Aware that he views his children through the lens of grace, we learn to choose frank confession over futile concealment. Aware that we cannot outrun his presence, we cease running, and abide. We learn to savor his nearness.” God knows every thought we have, every word we say, and every step that we take in a day. And yet, He chooses to love us and forgive us. There is nothing that we can do that will take His grace away from us.
I find such comfort in knowing that the God I love knows me so intimately and cares for me so deeply. I also find peace in knowing that He already knows all of the ugly parts of my life and in my heart, and He chooses to love me still. There is no need to hide anything from Him. Instead, we get to bring it all before Him, confident of His forgiveness and love.
Reflect:
- Has there ever been a time where you have tried to hide things from God? Are there any things that you have been “keeping” from God now?
- Spend some time giving everything over to Him and pray that He would help you to embrace His forgiveness.