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“Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee” (Psalm 119:11).

Have you ever helped with a house project, such as cleaning, painting, or pounding a nail into a wall? If so, you’ve probably learned to use a toolbox. Toolboxes contain all the things we need to accomplish big tasks and projects. Without a good toolbox, we probably wouldn’t get very far on a project.

Living for God requires tools too. What tools can help us do right and reject sin? The Bible says that the Word of God is the best tool we have to help us do what is right. It is always good to read God’s Word, but it is even better to memorize it. When we store up God’s Word in our minds, think about it, and try to obey it, we will not choose to sin. Memorized Scripture is a tool you can take with you to soccer, school, or a friend’s house. No matter where you go, you can review what the Word of God says, and then choose to obey. Do you have God’s Word in the toolbox of your life?

My response:

» How can I regularly review the Bible verses that I’ve memorized so I can store them up and always have them with me?

» How often do I think about what the verses mean?

» Do I usually choose to obey God’s Word?

“Exalt the Lord our God, and worship at his holy hill; for the Lord our God is holy” (Psalm 99:9).

What does it mean to “exalt” God? To exalt means to raise Him high, to make Him appear great in the eyes of others, to honor Him. What does “worship” mean? The Hebrew word for worship literally means a certain posture of the body that expresses humility or obedience. In other places in the Bible, this word is used to mean “bow down,” “crouch,” “stoop,” or even “fall down flat.” Do you see the contrast in those two words—“exalt” and “worship”? God is supposed to be high, and we, His worshipers, are supposed to be low.

God deserves to be honored because He is holy—absolutely pure and sinless. When we worship Him, we need to remember that we are not like Him. If it were not for His gracious gift of Jesus Christ, sinners like us would have no business coming anywhere near Him. We would have no right to talk to Him or ask Him for anything. It is only because of His great love and grace that He has chosen to pardon sinful people.

Our holy God deserves to be worshiped, but He deserves to be worshiped in a certain way. We must not come to Him thinking that our wishes, our problems, and ourselves are the most important things. We must come realizing that He is most important. We should come to Him humbly, knowing that we need His mercy more than anything else. We should come thanking Him that He is so loving and willing to grant that mercy. When we worship Him, we should make ourselves low and make Him high.

We should worship our holy God with humility and thankfulness.

My Response:

» When I go to church or have my personal quiet time, am I truly worshiping God?

» Which do I think of as more important—God or myself?

“Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? And one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father. But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear ye not therefore, ye are of more value than many sparrows” (Matthew 10:29–31).

God cares about big things; after all, He made the universe and the sun and the planets. Important things—not little things like haircuts and ballgames and birthday parties. But wait. He sees birds falling to the ground. How many birds have been hatched since time began? He saw all of them. Not just the eagles and the owls and the pelicans, but also the sparrows—plain little birds of no great importance.

If you have a close friend, you might think you know that friend well. Maybe you know what he wants for Christmas, or his favorite food. But no matter how well you know him, you know more about yourself. So, how many hairs do you have? You don’t know, do you?  Besides, the number changes from day to day. You wash it, brush it, fix it, and maybe even twist it or pull it when you’re thinking hard about something.

God knows. He has kept count of your hairs. And if He knows that, you can be sure He knows the rest: your family problems, your best friend moving away, your pet dying, your team losing, your bad grades at school. Not only does He know, He cares. The Creator of the universe cares about you.

Take your problems, big and small, to the One Who knows and cares and can do something about them.

My response:

» Which one is more valuable—a bird or me?

» Which one did Jesus die for?

» Whose prayers does He hear?

“Whither shall I go from thy spirit? or whither shall I flee from thy presence? If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there. If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea; Even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me” (Psalm 139:7–10).

If you like to play hide-and-seek, it’s probably fun for you to think about hiding places. Maybe when you visit a new place or go to someone else’s house, you scout out all the best places to hide. If you’re good at finding hiding places, the “seeker” probably has to spend a long time looking for you. There may even have been times when you’ve hidden so well that he’s given up looking for you!

In Psalm 139, David was thinking about hiding places, but not because he wanted to play a game. He was thinking about how impossible it is to run away and hide from God. In the first part of the psalm, he wrote about God’s very personal knowledge of His creatures. He thought about how God knows every move we make, every word we say, and even the thoughts that go through our minds! When we think about God, Who knows us so deeply and personally, we might feel like we want to get away and hide from Him—especially when we consider that we’re sinners and He is holy.

David considered several places he might go. Perhaps he could go up into the sky—even into outer space. Or maybe he could go to the world beyond the grave—the world where people go after they die. Perhaps he could go as far east as the sunrise, or to the farthest reaches of the sea. Do those sound like good hiding places? The problem is, none of those are places a person can hide from God. God’s presence fills the earth and the sky. He is there, no matter where we go.

In verse 10, David thought about the fact that God is loving. His gentle, strong hand is actually leading us when we try to run from Him, and wherever we end up, His hand takes hold of us there. We can never run away or hide from Him.

What are some ways you try to “run away” from God? Do you close up your heart when He speaks to you through His Word or through your pastor’s preaching? Do you refuse to cooperate with Him when He shows you a need to forgive someone or to change your attitude? Do you try to shrug off something He tells you to do because you know it will make you uncomfortable?

Since God is loving, why would we want to be apart from Him? The Bible says that the best place to be is in His presence (Philippians 1:23). It is only there that we can have “fullness of joy” (Psalm 16:11). Being close to Him, loving Him, and obeying Him is the very best thing for every one of us.

We can never run away from God.

My response:

» Am I trying to run away from God in my heart?

» What is God asking me to do?

» What do I need to do to stop running and obey Him?

“And Elijah said, As the LORD of hosts liveth, before whom I stand, I will surely shew myself unto him to day” (1 Kings 18:15).

Elijah boldly said he would risk his life on the fact that the LORD is alive. If God was not alive, the king would surely kill Elijah. Remember, three years earlier, Elijah told King Ahab that there would be no rain for a long time because of Ahab’s sin. The king did not like that and wanted to kill Elijah. Ahab believed that Israel’s troubles came because of Elijah, not because of his own sin. Ahab had been searching for Elijah, but Elijah surprised him, saying he would show himself, or stand before, the king. They were to meet at Mount Carmel, where they would find out who really serves a living God.

The word “alive” means “to exist” or “to dwell.” Many people in Israel worshiped Baal, a false god. But Baal could not do anything or help the people, because he was not alive. The people themselves had created Baal. God was not created by us; He created us. God does exist. He is alive, and He dwells wherever we are.

Would you risk your life on the fact that God is alive? You might be thinking, “Of course I would.” If that’s the case, do you live as if you believe that truth? Since God is alive, nothing takes Him by surprise. He is involved in everything that comes your way. So if you do, see, think, or say anything that is not pleasing to God, He sees and knows about it. If you obey Him, read your Bible, pray, obey the authorities over you, and seek to please God, He sees and knows that too.

God is alive and is involved in everything that comes my way, both good and bad.

My response: Since God is alive and involved in all I do, how can I live to please God?”