“I hold back my feet from every evil way, in order to keep your word.” (Psalm 119:101, ESV)
Have you ever read a Bible passage only to see it in a brand-new light? Have you ever been reading the Bible when an entirely new revelation dawned on you from a familiar verse, a revelation that was there in plain view all along? A Bible verse can speak to your soul in one way and your mind in another. All passages of scripture contain layers of depth that may speak to you differently from day to day!
The scripture above from Psalm 119 got me thinking. Initially, as I looked at the words, I understood that the passage was teaching me to keep myself from evil. However, the words of this verse held some other keen insights that piqued my interest the more I meditated on the meaning and order of the words! The Psalm 119:101 begins with the words “I hold back my feet from every evil way…”. As I read these words, a new understanding came to me. Did you notice that this scripture mentioned that the believer must “HOLD BACK” his or her feet from every evil way? Taken literally, these words mean that your feet will want to go toward evil. If you don’t purposefully stop yourself, your natural inclination will be to sin!
When David Duncan entered his second semester at seminary, he did so with little money. His family was poor. College had taken every bit of his savings. The scholarships and student loan money were drying up. Now, working two jobs, he barely had enough money to cover tuition payments, food, and his rent.
On a Tuesday morning, David opened up the coffee shop where he worked. It was early. The sun had barely risen. David was tired from his two jobs and seminary classes. He had spent the last two nights with barely five hours of sleep each night as he worked on class assignments and required reading for his New Testament class. As he pondered how he was going to make it through the next few days, pay all his bills, and keep up with course work, David spied something on the floor in the hallway leading to the bathroom. Half hidden under a cabinet was a pile of money with a rubber band keeping it together. David bent over and picked it up. Then, he realized that the pile of money had to run to over $5000. Initially, David was ecstatic. This would cover so many months of rent and school expenses! In his hand was more money than his last student loan! This was his lucky day! He put the money in his pocket and finished opening the coffee shop, whistling with joy as he did so.
A half hour after opening, David began to feel the onset of guilt. He realized that someone might need that $5000. He also wondered if it wasn’t wrong to keep the money without finding its real owner. David’s conscience began to act up. His heart rate sped up. He counted the money in a back room with his mind leaping to all the possibilities and what that money could do. As he pondered all this, he returned to the counter by the cash register. Standing there, he spied a woman walking anxiously near the bathrooms. She looked distraught, pale, and anxious. As David watched the woman, he decided to approach her.
After asking the woman if she was OK, she responded, “Oh my God! Did you happen to see any money around here this morning? I dropped some money from the bank!” David thought about the pile of money with the rubber band in his pocket under his apron. He replied, “Why? Are you missing some? Are you OK?” Tears burst forth as she responded, “I lost some money yesterday evening. I don’t know if it was here. I went to the bank to pull out all my savings. Then, I stopped here to get a bite to eat on my way to use that money to pay for a down payment on a used car. The engine in my old car was seized, and I needed something to get to work. I found a used car on sale nearby that a lady was selling. It was perfect for me.” David responded, saying, “I’m so sorry about what happened. Are you going to be OK?” The woman, with tears in her eyes, responded, “It was everything I had. I don’t know what to do now. I have nothing left.”
David went back to work. However, his mind was racing. Why hadn’t he told the woman he had found some money? Why hadn’t he just given her the money? He tried to justify his actions. He told himself that it could be someone else’s money. He thought he might hold onto the money and see if someone offered a reward for it. He thought too about going to the police with the money but then thought better about it. As he pondered all this, he noticed the woman come up to him and ask for just a cup so she could get some water. He told her, “We charge $.25 for a cup for water.” With tears, she opened up her purse and got out a quarter and handed it to him. She took the cup and filled it with water and sat at a table near the back of the seating area and stared out the window.
As David took care of two other customers in line at the coffee shop, he kept an eye on the woman. He noticed her wiping away tears. He noticed how upset she looked. The more he looked at her, the more guilty he felt. Finally, in his heart he said, “God, you know I needed this money! Now, what do I do?” David knew in his heart what to do…. he just couldn’t bring himself to do it.
After a few more tortuous minutes, David approached the woman. As he walked to her table, he saw she was shaking as she tried to drink from her cup of water. Resigned to what he must do, David said, “Ma’am, how much money did you lose?”
She responded, “$4, 720”. Then, she burst into tears.
David Duncan swallowed a time or two, then said, “Some money was found this morning in the hallway. I counted it a few minutes ago and it did amount to exactly $4,720. I think this is yours.” David handed her the pile of money wrapped in a rubber band. The woman openly sobbed as she gingerly took the money. It was obvious that she needed it. David even wondered if she didn’t need it as badly or worse than he needed it. She stood up and hugged David, saying, “You have no idea how much this means to me!” But David did know how much that kind of money meant to a person with little means.
Even though David was a seminary student working his way to a career in ministry, he still was very tempted by that money he found. His initial inclination was to use the money to pay bills. It was the first glimmer of excitement and hope he had had in weeks that his financial situation would improve. Still, David decided to do the right thing. He gave the money to its rightful owner. In doing so, he not only brought her incredible relief, but he also felt good about being able to help her. Still, he regretted just how much that money would have helped his own situation.
Psalm 119:101 is a reminder that at times, you need to “HOLD BACK” from your natural inclination to do something wrong or selfish or criminal or evil. You need to fight back your self-centered intentions and desires in order to do the right thing, the godly thing. You do this not to just look good, not just to get rewards, but “to keep God’s word” (Psalm 119:101b). You do the right thing because you love God in Christ. You act faithfully in order to keep faithful to God. You fight your own inclination to sin in order to honor God in Christ!
Isn’t it interesting how a scripture about feet can mean so much, say so much, bring so much wisdom? There is even more that this tiny scripture can teach you. I only wish I could explain here some of the many nuances of this scripture I have gleaned just today! However, that is for you to meditate on and explore on your own!
Still, the question is before you based on my reading of this verse: “Is there an area of your life where today you will need to HOLD BACK from an evil way?” Are you willing to keep your feet from evil out of a deep love of Christ? What natural inclinations do you have that frequently get you into hot water? Will you do the right thing even when it may damage your reputation or cause you some loss?
To be faithful and holy, you will have to fight the natural inclination to sin. You will have to purposefully HOLD BACK your feet and thoughts and desires from leading you into temptation and sin.
The scripture above from Psalm 119 got me thinking. Initially, as I looked at the words, I understood that the passage was teaching me to keep myself from evil. However, the words of this verse held some other keen insights that piqued my interest the more I meditated on the meaning and order of the words! The Psalm 119:101 begins with the words “I hold back my feet from every evil way…”. As I read these words, a new understanding came to me. Did you notice that this scripture mentioned that the believer must “HOLD BACK” his or her feet from every evil way? Taken literally, these words mean that your feet will want to go toward evil. If you don’t purposefully stop yourself, your natural inclination will be to sin!
When David Duncan entered his second semester at seminary, he did so with little money. His family was poor. College had taken every bit of his savings. The scholarships and student loan money were drying up. Now, working two jobs, he barely had enough money to cover tuition payments, food, and his rent.
On a Tuesday morning, David opened up the coffee shop where he worked. It was early. The sun had barely risen. David was tired from his two jobs and seminary classes. He had spent the last two nights with barely five hours of sleep each night as he worked on class assignments and required reading for his New Testament class. As he pondered how he was going to make it through the next few days, pay all his bills, and keep up with course work, David spied something on the floor in the hallway leading to the bathroom. Half hidden under a cabinet was a pile of money with a rubber band keeping it together. David bent over and picked it up. Then, he realized that the pile of money had to run to over $5000. Initially, David was ecstatic. This would cover so many months of rent and school expenses! In his hand was more money than his last student loan! This was his lucky day! He put the money in his pocket and finished opening the coffee shop, whistling with joy as he did so.
A half hour after opening, David began to feel the onset of guilt. He realized that someone might need that $5000. He also wondered if it wasn’t wrong to keep the money without finding its real owner. David’s conscience began to act up. His heart rate sped up. He counted the money in a back room with his mind leaping to all the possibilities and what that money could do. As he pondered all this, he returned to the counter by the cash register. Standing there, he spied a woman walking anxiously near the bathrooms. She looked distraught, pale, and anxious. As David watched the woman, he decided to approach her.
After asking the woman if she was OK, she responded, “Oh my God! Did you happen to see any money around here this morning? I dropped some money from the bank!” David thought about the pile of money with the rubber band in his pocket under his apron. He replied, “Why? Are you missing some? Are you OK?” Tears burst forth as she responded, “I lost some money yesterday evening. I don’t know if it was here. I went to the bank to pull out all my savings. Then, I stopped here to get a bite to eat on my way to use that money to pay for a down payment on a used car. The engine in my old car was seized, and I needed something to get to work. I found a used car on sale nearby that a lady was selling. It was perfect for me.” David responded, saying, “I’m so sorry about what happened. Are you going to be OK?” The woman, with tears in her eyes, responded, “It was everything I had. I don’t know what to do now. I have nothing left.”
David went back to work. However, his mind was racing. Why hadn’t he told the woman he had found some money? Why hadn’t he just given her the money? He tried to justify his actions. He told himself that it could be someone else’s money. He thought he might hold onto the money and see if someone offered a reward for it. He thought too about going to the police with the money but then thought better about it. As he pondered all this, he noticed the woman come up to him and ask for just a cup so she could get some water. He told her, “We charge $.25 for a cup for water.” With tears, she opened up her purse and got out a quarter and handed it to him. She took the cup and filled it with water and sat at a table near the back of the seating area and stared out the window.
As David took care of two other customers in line at the coffee shop, he kept an eye on the woman. He noticed her wiping away tears. He noticed how upset she looked. The more he looked at her, the more guilty he felt. Finally, in his heart he said, “God, you know I needed this money! Now, what do I do?” David knew in his heart what to do…. he just couldn’t bring himself to do it.
After a few more tortuous minutes, David approached the woman. As he walked to her table, he saw she was shaking as she tried to drink from her cup of water. Resigned to what he must do, David said, “Ma’am, how much money did you lose?”
She responded, “$4, 720”. Then, she burst into tears.
David Duncan swallowed a time or two, then said, “Some money was found this morning in the hallway. I counted it a few minutes ago and it did amount to exactly $4,720. I think this is yours.” David handed her the pile of money wrapped in a rubber band. The woman openly sobbed as she gingerly took the money. It was obvious that she needed it. David even wondered if she didn’t need it as badly or worse than he needed it. She stood up and hugged David, saying, “You have no idea how much this means to me!” But David did know how much that kind of money meant to a person with little means.
Even though David was a seminary student working his way to a career in ministry, he still was very tempted by that money he found. His initial inclination was to use the money to pay bills. It was the first glimmer of excitement and hope he had had in weeks that his financial situation would improve. Still, David decided to do the right thing. He gave the money to its rightful owner. In doing so, he not only brought her incredible relief, but he also felt good about being able to help her. Still, he regretted just how much that money would have helped his own situation.
Psalm 119:101 is a reminder that at times, you need to “HOLD BACK” from your natural inclination to do something wrong or selfish or criminal or evil. You need to fight back your self-centered intentions and desires in order to do the right thing, the godly thing. You do this not to just look good, not just to get rewards, but “to keep God’s word” (Psalm 119:101b). You do the right thing because you love God in Christ. You act faithfully in order to keep faithful to God. You fight your own inclination to sin in order to honor God in Christ!
Isn’t it interesting how a scripture about feet can mean so much, say so much, bring so much wisdom? There is even more that this tiny scripture can teach you. I only wish I could explain here some of the many nuances of this scripture I have gleaned just today! However, that is for you to meditate on and explore on your own!
Still, the question is before you based on my reading of this verse: “Is there an area of your life where today you will need to HOLD BACK from an evil way?” Are you willing to keep your feet from evil out of a deep love of Christ? What natural inclinations do you have that frequently get you into hot water? Will you do the right thing even when it may damage your reputation or cause you some loss?
To be faithful and holy, you will have to fight the natural inclination to sin. You will have to purposefully HOLD BACK your feet and thoughts and desires from leading you into temptation and sin.