Teach me your way, O LORD, that I may walk in your truth; unite my heart to fear your name. I give thanks to you, O Lord my God, with my whole heart, and I will glorify your name forever.
Often we are told to strengthen or purify our heart. But here, and only here, we are told to unite it and that doing so we might fear God. But we not asked to unite it with something, we are asked to bring it together as one (yachad).
My office is a matrixed world. I have people working for me from 5 different managers, and they from multiple organizations. There would be chaos of cross purposes if there was not an agreed upon goal. This week I will be producing reports of individual velocity of the work these individuals have accomplished that are part of that goal. Those reports will be used by their managers in their mid-year review. We are united.
Is your heart united? In this harried world, is your heart united? How is this done? The Psalmist cries out "Teach me your way, O Lord". He longs to walk in God's truth.
Notice please that the walk is not a destination, but a path. He does not cry out to locate an elusive and hidden secret truth. He asks to be taught how to walk in the path of truth ('emeth). The word describes it as "peace and stability".
Notice also that it is not "isolation and tranquility". It is "peace and stability". We do not walk alone. As socially distant we are currently to be, we are called to bring peace and stability to every conversation -- every time. But how? It is so easy to get off the path.
Witness this week. I got a call from one my folks at work. He asked the dreaded question "Why?". Out of dozens of people I had excluded one person, a teammate of his, from a required assignment. It was simply not fair. This innate need for justice makes the following verse of the clearest maps of this path:
He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?
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