Psalm 37:3-4 Trust in the LORD and do good;
dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture.
Delight yourself in the LORD
and he will give you the desires of your heart.

There is so much thoughtful, meaningful content in the Psalms that it becomes problematical to choose which verses to expand when writing devotionally, and Psalm 37 is certainly a good case in point. Verse 4 here is well known and often quoted, but not practiced nearly as often. However, it is rightly paired with verse 3, and the Japanese translation gives fresh insight as to what sort of lifestyle delights in the Lord. The first line is very straightforward, as well as very important. If we don’t trust in God, then our good deeds aren’t worth much, but as James pointed out, saying we trust God but then not doing good deeds is empty. (James 2:14-17) It is in the second line of that verse that the Japanese and the NIV differ. Where the NIV says “enjoy safe pasture,” the Japanese says “nurture integrity.” That certainly fleshes out the picture of someone who “delights in the Lord,” as verse 4 so famously says. If we are truly delighting in the Lord we will be doing all we can to be pleasing to Him. That is when He will indeed give us the desires of our hearts, because our prime desire will be to please Him. People have been quick to seize on verse 4 as a way to “get God to give them stuff,” when that very motive is a violation of what these two verses are saying. Repeatedly in this Psalm David contrasts the wicked with the righteous, and the contrast is striking indeed. However, the way to get the blessings David writes about is not by demanding, but by trusting obedience.

This is something I, of course, need to remember myself, but it is also something that as a pastor I frequently need to communicate to others. I just had a phone call from someone who hasn’t begun to understand and accept this truth. He was thinking that he would catch me off guard and get me to agree to do something that I have said in the past I could not do for ethical reasons, and when he found I could not be manipulated, he hung up. His life has been a case study in the immense damage a person can do, to themselves and to others, by be­ing totally self-centered. I consider him pathetic, yet he has brought all of his troubles on himself. Even now, if he would take these two verses to heart and live them out, his life would turn around, but I hold little hope for someone so set in his ways. I am not to give up on him, but neither am I to think that I can or should change him; only the Holy Spirit can lead to genuine repentance. With him and with everyone else, I am to keep myself available so that the Holy Spirit may do the Father’s will through me for their blessing.

Father, thank You for this reminder, and for the “nurture integrity” translation. I can think of several people who need that encouragement even right now. If this is what you want me to speak on this next Sunday, plant and confirm the message in my heart. In any case, help me communicate it lovingly and effectively to those who need to hear it, so the devil’s schemes may be defeated and people set free to walk in all that You intend, for their blessing and Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!