Psalm 104:34 “My meditation of Him shall be sweet: I will be glad in the LORD.”
We all meditate on something. Our thoughts race from one topic to another constantly throughout the day. Even at night while we sleep, our brains are processing all the information that we have taken in during the day. Despite all the thinking that we do though, it can often be difficult to focus our minds and choose what we want to think about. Worries and cares will come. Often, the most difficult time to focus our thoughts is when we are trying to read and meditate on the Word of God! So, how do we adjust our thinking away from the worries and cares that are constantly bombarding us and stealing our joy? The key is to direct our focus in the right way, as indicated in the verse above.
Of Him – Our thoughts must focus on the Lord. There are many good truths taught in the Bible that we do well to pay heed to; however, the center focus of the whole Bible is the Lord Jesus Christ. Living the Christian life is not about doing; it is about having a relationship with the Lord! If we would change our mindset, the way we think and what we think, we must learn to think of Him. Learn His names, learn His character, learn His ways. We will never reach the end of the study, for there is always more to learn of Him. We will never run into a situation in life, but there is always a facet of His character that speaks directly to that situation. Are you feeling weary? He is your Strength! Have you suffered the disappointment of great hopes? He is the God of all comfort! We can then find Him more than enough in any difficulty of life. But this will only come as we focus our thoughts to be of Him.
Shall be sweet – What do you think of when you think of sweet? Some people love sweet desserts, while others only prefer a small taste of sweetness. “Sweet” is one of the four taste bud categories that we have in our tongues. To be classified as sweet, it means that it is not bitter, sour, or salty. It is satisfyingly pleasant. When we focus our minds on Who God is to us, in our given situation, we will find that our thoughts, our meditation, will be sweet. They will not be bitter – hard to bear, grievous, or distressing. They will not be sour – unpleasant or strained. They will not be salty – pungent or sharp. They will be sweet, not because the circumstances of life have changed, but because our thoughts have changed to be of Him.
I will be glad in the LORD – What a wonderful God we serve Who allows us to not only find sweetness in life, but also to be truly glad! There are times in life when we may be going through a trial that we have a sweet peace from the Lord, but we find it hard to be glad in it. However, we can be glad even in trials when our meditation is of Him. We are not happy because our circumstances are wonderful; we are not happy because we can handle it. We can be glad because our happiness, our joy, is found in the Lord. When we think of Who He is to us in our situation, we can choose to rejoice and be glad because He is Who He says He is! This is the result of meditating of Him.
Our thoughts are easily focused on what is going on around us, what we can see, and what we feel is true. When we allow this to happen, we will be cast down and discouraged and sidetracked from what is important in life. However, if we choose to focus our thinking to be of Him, we will find sweetness, we will discover true joy and happiness, and our relationship will be strengthened as we get to know our Lord personally!
