Psalm 131

This is the 12th psalm of the fifteen Song of Ascents psalms

¹ My heart is not proud, O LORD, my eyes are not haughty; I do not concern myself with great matters or things too wonderful for me.
² But I have stilled and quieted my soul; like a weaned child with its mother, like a weaned child is my soul within me.
³ O Israel, put your hope in the LORD both now and forevermore.

It is amazing how a short psalm like Psalm 131 can ease our mind. The beauty of God’s Word is how the truth found in each verse can touch the heart of those who are not proud, who have quieted themselves so that the Spirit of God can renew that individual relationship between them and God.

How often do we try to put ourselves or others on a pedestal only to see how easy it is to fall off that pedestal? How often do we seem to have all the answers and then realize that the path we have charted is taking us in the wrong direction? How often do we let our thought become express words without going through the filtering system that we have developed during our experiences on this earth? Yet the opening verse of this Psalm gives us the advice that we need to avoid all these issues. The definition of pride found in the dictionary is: a high or inordinate opinion of one’s own dignity, importance, merit, or superiority, whether as cherished in the mind or as displayed in bearing, conduct, etc. Synonyms for being proud include pride, conceit, self-esteem, egotism, and vanity can imply an elevated idea of the way we appear to others. The advantages, achievements, as well as the position that we attain in this life, often lead us to develop characteristics that creates an environment in which self-admiration takes over in our life. I recall one of my favorites saying in the days of my youth as “when you are good you are good, but when you are great you are like me!”. However, age can sometimes have a way of adjusting our attitudes, and where pride exist a fall is close behind.

Sooner or later we arrive at the place in our life after the fall from pride, that we realize that there are matters that we can’t handle and things that are now greater than your abilities to comprehend and explain. It is during these time that we either return again to the folly of starting over and doing things my way again, or finally stops and wait on God to make things happen. We daily face the challenge of doing it my way or waiting on God. There is a lot of pride in doing things my way, however, there is no rest. As I study the ministry of Christ, I realize that this psalm reflects the yoke that Christ refers to in Matthew chapter 11 verses twenty-five through thirty:

At that time Jesus said, “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned and revealed them to little children. Yes, Father, for this was your good pleasure. “All things have been committed to me by my Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him. “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

Yes, to the wise and learned the hidden things of God are hidden. It is only when we realized that our hope is not the power that we have but that this hope awaits those that wait on God. So, if you are weary and burden with the issues of life then take Christ offer and take his yoke and learn from Him.