Shame and Loneliness...and Happiness | Psalm 119

Milt Reynolds | November 30, 2021

Image source: https://pixabay.com/illustrations/shame-loop-spiral-chasing-judgment-2088368/ - johnhain - no attribution required

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For me, the key to delighting in, and praying through Psalm 119, has been to notice the many different synonyms used for "God's Word":

• The law
• His testimonies
• His ways
• His precepts
• His statutes
• His commandments
• His righteous rules

All of these are different facets of one gloriously cut gem: The precious Word of God, the Holy Bible. All of the books of the Holy Bible together are the one and only one treasury of all that God has declared to us, and done for us.

I first noticed a connection between shame and loneliness, God's Word, and my happiness, in the first stanza of Psalm 119, verses 1-8. This stanza is given the title of Aleph, which is the first letter of the Hebrew alphabet.

The English word, "blessed" is a translation of the Hebrew word, Esher. An equally valid translation of Esher is "happiness".

Psalm 119, stanza Aleph, is all about the happiness that may be experienced by a person who delights in, and does well, all that God's Word declares.

But it's not until the end of this stanza that we see the how of happiness. How does delighting in God's Word bring happiness? How does obedience to Gods' Word make a person feel "blessed" or "happy"?

The answer to how is found in verses 6-8:

• God's Word removes shame
• God's Word removes loneliness

Without delighting in, and doing well, all that is declared by God, the only other option is trying to delight in and doing well all that the world declares.

And the world is mortally broken. The world around us is broken, bitter, barricaded and brawling in every corner, in every generation.

The world around us will never cease being a cause of our feeling shamed, in small or big ways, for moments or for weeks at a time.

The world around us will never cease being a cause of our feeling loneliness, whether in a mall, a marriage, or atop a mountain.

But...

God's Word is our remedy for shame and loneliness, our only lasting remedy. God's Word removes our shame before God. God's Word brings his presence to relieve our loneliness.

My emotions are still broken. I'm still vulnerable to feeling shame and loneliness...but it's not from God. Shame and loneliness come from the gripping, relentless influence of the world around and within me.

From God there is only great love and great presence. From God's Word there is removal of shame and loneliness.

And that is most likely the very best I can hope for in a broken, bitter, barricaded, brawling world.

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