Evening Scripture
Psalm, Chapter 139
You have searched me, Lord,
and you know me.
You know when I sit and when I rise;
you perceive my thoughts from afar.
You discern my going out and my lying down;
you are familiar with all my ways.
Before a word is on my tongue
you, Lord, know it completely.
You hem me in behind and before,
and you lay your hand upon me.
Such knowledge is too wonderful for me,
too lofty for me to attain.
Where can I go from your Spirit?
Where can I flee from your presence?
If I go up to the heavens, you are there;
if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.
If I rise on the wings of the dawn,
if I settle on the far side of the sea,
even there your hand will guide me,
your right hand will hold me fast.
If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me
and the light become night around me,”
even the darkness will not be dark to you;
the night will shine like the day,
for darkness is as light to you.
For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful,
I know that full well.
My frame was not hidden from you
when I was made in the secret place,
when I was woven together in the depths of the earth.
Your eyes saw my unformed body;
all the days ordained for me were written in your book
before one of them came to be.
How precious to me are your thoughts, God!
How vast is the sum of them!
Were I to count them,
they would outnumber the grains of sand—
when I awake, I am still with you.
If only you, God, would slay the wicked!
Away from me, you who are bloodthirsty!
They speak of you with evil intent;
your adversaries misuse your name.
Do I not hate those who hate you, Lord,
and abhor those who are in rebellion against you?
I have nothing but hatred for them;
I count them my enemies.
Search me, God, and know my heart;
test me and know my anxious thoughts.
See if there is any offensive way in me,
and lead me in the way everlasting.
Evening Reflection
What does searching bring to your mind?
Typically, we search for valuable things. We spend our time seeking out answers to questions that matter to us. We search for someone to love and spend our life with. Often, we are searching for meaning in our own stories. Searching brings to mind the idea of earnestly desiring to know something or someone.
In Psalm 139:1, the Psalmist writes that God had searched him and knew him. These words paint a picture of interest, value, connection, and love. God searches our hearts and our thoughts. He finds every part of who we are to be precious and worthy of love.
God is described as a Father. As a parent, we get a glimpse of the kind of love God has for us. Parents are enamored with their children. We are interested in their every quirk and silly mannerism; we do all we can to meet all of our kids' needs, and we devote our lives to raising and guiding our kids.
Of course, as human parents, we also mess up. We run out of patience. We sometimes fail to show up or love as selflessly as we should, so the analogy of an earthly father and our Heavenly Father isn’t a perfect one, but it’s a glimpse into how fully known and loved we are. Our Father God is love, and his love is perfect.
When we begin to internalize how loved we are, how thoughtfully our being was crafted, how invested God is in our stories, we can start to let go of our anxiety. 1 John 4:18 teaches, “There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punis
