The book of Psalms allows us to see deep into the heart and soul of the man whose heart mirrored the heart of God. The words of these psalms and the depth of the spirituality behind them should become the words of our hearts. Early in this book, David said, “Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart Be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord, my strength and my Redeemer” (Psalm 19:14). These words are followed by more than a hundred psalms where we see the words of David and look into his heart. When we read and meditate on these words from his mouth, they allow us to see his heart and then our hearts can become like the heart of God.
Almost every emotion of our hearts can be found in the psalms as we meditate on them. There are psalms written when David was so filled with despair that he was about to turn from God (Psalm 73), and there are those where David was filled with exaltation of the grandeur of being in God’s presence. Our emotions differ from day to day, and since almost all emotions are found in the psalms, there are psalms that fit each period of our lives.
To see this illustrated, take a moment to look at Psalm 63. David was dealing with those who were seeking to destroy him (v. 9), but instead of looking at them he looks toward God. The greatness of God is so far greater than what others were doing, and David fully saw this.
He recognized that God was supreme, and God was personally concerned about him. “O God, You are my God” (v. 1). His soul and his body began early each day by praising God. He looked at God and saw his power and glory (v. 2). Every day David spent seeing His greatness—he blessed his name and lifted up his hands toward heaven (v. 4).
Though there were those who sought to destroy him, David ended each day mindful that God would help him. “I remember You on my bed, I meditate on You in the night watches” (v. 6). He never forgot that God had helped him in the past and he had lived “…in the shadow of Your wings” (v. 7).
Note carefully his words, “My soul follows close behind you” (v. 8). God was His guide who led him in paths of righteousness, but David did not follow him from a great distance. He was a close follower of Him whose right hand upheld him. He knew that ultimately he would triumph over his enemies (v. 10). He praised God with his lips (v. 3) and his mouth praised God with joyful lips (v. 5).
Should not we say to God, “Let the words of OUR mouth and the meditation of OUR hearts be acceptable in your sight”? David has shown us how to do this!