“Doing Your will , My God, is my joy; Your Word is in my inmost being.” Psalm 40:9 Doing the will of God is something most desirable and a great investment. The Bible is full of admonitions for us to pursue it single-mindedly with all of our heart.
But, perhaps equally important is the manner in which we follow in His footsteps. In the above verse of Scripture we glimpse the heart of David, whose overwhelming passion and wholehearted love was a surprise for even God Himself, were it indeed possible, and gained His rapt attention not lost even when in his impetuosity David made unwise choices and fell headlong into sin. This should certainly be an object lesson for both perfectionists and those who treat sin lightly.
I wonder what our primary motivation is in our pursuit of God? Sometimes, it may be through dubious motives such as fear of punishment or through the outward recognition and applause of men, although one could still argue that this is nonetheless better than not pursuing God at all? Yet, for David, God alone was his first choice, his joy above all things;
anything less was unimaginable. Even when he fell from grace, he allowed nothing to prevent him from clawing his way back into the presence and favour of God.
God desires to transform our lives from mediocrity into an overflowing abundance where we will discover the infinite treasures of God that far exceed anything that this world can offer. May we experience a deeper measure of His joy as we follow in His pathway; that alone is a reward far above price and of infinite worth!
I want to share something very sad. Our Sages tell us that only one-fifth of the Israelites left Egypt because they preferred their dubious security to venture out into freedom. After the abolishment of slavery in America and the black people became free, many wanted to go right back to being a slave. Although freedom is preached from many pulpits, few teach about the responsibility of freedom which is a serious commitment and a heavy responsibility.
Doing the will of God brings true freedom and, ‘He whoso the Son sets free shall be free indeed,’ but it also brings with it a yoke that many shy away from because we all tend to prefer to stick with what is familiar and ‘safe.’
Here is a story to illustrate the heart of David that I pray will spur us forward to abandon ourselves unreservedly into His care and better understand the meaning of the words, ‘what we sow we shall reap’:
A man once came to the Chasidic leader Rabbi Yerachmiel of Pshischa with his tale of woe:
“Rebbe, I am a tailor. Over the years, I have earned quite a reputation for my expertise and the high quality of my work. All the nobles in the area order their livery and their ladies’ dresses from me.
Several months ago, I received the most important commission of my life. The prince himself heard of me and asked that I sew him a suit of clothes from the finest silk to be gotten in the land. But when I brought him the finished product, he began yelling and cursing:
‘This is the best you can do? Why, it’s atrocious! Who taught you to sew?’
He ordered me out of his house and threw the garment out after me.
Rebbe, I am ruined. All my capital is invested in the cloth. Worse still, my reputation has been totally destroyed. No one will dare order anything from me after this. I don’t understand what happened! This is the best work I’ve ever done!
‘Go back to your shop,’ advised Rabbi Yerachmiel. ‘Remove all the stitches in this garment, sew them anew exactly how you sewed them before, and bring it to the prince.’ Two weeks later, the tailor was back.
‘Rebbe, You saved my life! To be honest, I had little faith in your strange idea. But having nothing to lose, I did as you said. When I presented the result to the prince, his eyes lit up.’ Beautiful!’ he cried. You have more than lived up to your reputation. This is the finest suit of clothes I have ever seen!’
He rewarded me handsomely, and promised to send more work my way. What was the difference?’
‘The first suit,’ explained Rabbi Yerachmiel, ‘was sewn with arrogance and pride. The result was a spiritually repulsive garment, which, though technically perfect, was devoid of all grace and beauty. The second suit was sewn with a humble spirit and a broken heart, investing in the garment an inner beauty that evokes awe and admiration in everyone who beholds it.’”
