Christian recording artist Amy Grant’s 1984 song “Thy Word,” part of many outdoor ministry songbooks, has introduced generations of Christians to Psalm 119. “Thy word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path” (verse 105, KJV).
Some years ago, a seminary professor brought to class an example of the oil lamps the psalmist might have had in mind: tiny clay vessels that fit in the palm of one hand. Thousands of years before electricity, these lamps might well light the path forward – but not like a high-powered flashlight illuminating the entire road. Perhaps, the professor reasoned, this is exactly the way the psalmist meant it. God’s word gives us just enough light to see the next step in front of us, but no more – yet the lamp that is faithful can still guide us home, one step at a time.
Our future rests in God, whose love already knows us fully, and will never end (1 Corinthians 13:8-12). Like the oil map, these promises do not reveal everything, but they give us a way to walk forward into the future.
This message is excerpted from the Bible study “Holy time” by Meghan Johnston Aelabouni in the November 2020 Gather magazine.
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