Devotion: transforming power of God

August 9th

Transforming Power

⁷The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul; The testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple; ⁸The statutes of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart; The commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes; ⁹The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring forever; The judgments of the LORD are true and righteous altogether. ¹⁰More to be desired are they than gold, Yea, than much fine gold; Sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb. ¹¹Moreover by them Your servant is warned, And in keeping them there is great reward.

¹²Who can understand his errors? Cleanse me from secret faults. ¹³Keep back Your servant also from presumptuous sins; Let them not have dominion over me. Then I shall be blameless, And I shall be innocent of great transgression. ¹⁴Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart Be acceptable in Your sight, O LORD, my strength and my Redeemer. Psalm 19:7-14 NKJV

Psalm 19 gives us an awesome look at the transforming power of God and his word. Verses 1-6 declare the glory of God’s creation and the fact the heavens and skies are enduring evidence of God’s existence and creative power.

Verses 7-11 (above) are applicable to the healing process from “sin-addiction.” Sex addiction is a sin addiction. The Bible, the collection of God’s written Word, contains his law and statutes. His Word is perfect, sure, right, pure, true and righteous. When we read it and load it into our minds, it actually releases God’s healing power! Specifically, it:

Converts the soul
Gives us wisdom
Rejoices our heart
Enlightens our eyes
Warns us about the paths of evil
Gives great reward if we keep on the path of righteousness

If we have filled our eyes with porn images and have dwelled on sexual fantasy, we need all of the above factors working in our minds as we walk to freedom. Cleaning up the thoughtlife is one of the biggest challenges that we may face once we’ve stopped looking at porn. Studying God’s Word will help us meet that challenge and find cleansing, strength and restoration of a pure mind.

Questions for further thought:

Please list at least three things that God’s word does in us.
In order to counteract the negative or evil things we have filled our mind and eyes with, what must we do?
How often have you read your Bible during this past week?
If less than daily, what steps can you take to make reading the Bible a higher priority?

Prayer: Verses 12-14 make an excellent repentance prayer from our secret sins. Verse 13 addresses presumptuous sin (“overstepping due bounds” Webster’s), which describes sex addiction. Presumptuous sin will rule our lives if we let it. Just as David asked God to not let the presumptuous sin have dominion or rule over him, we can make the same prayer. For example, we can pray:

“Father in heaven, please forgive me of my sins and cleanse me from secret faults. Please keep me back from presumptuous sins and do not let them rule over me. I am cleansed by the blood of Jesus and Father, I delight in your word. Please help me to feed my mind daily on the Bible. Please use it to bring healing to my mind from the memories of sin. Thank you, Father, for making me blameless through Jesus, innocent of great sin. Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight. Father, if I am tempted to think on impure things today, please convict me and help me direct my thoughts toward pure things. Lord, You are my strength and my Redeemer. I praise you now and forever. Amen.”

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