relationships (Psalm 101:1-8) Walking With Integrity, Especially at Home

(Psalm 101:1-8)

     I will sing of mercy and justice;
     To You, Lord, I will sing praises.
2   I will carefully attend to the blameless way.
     When will You come to me?
     I will walk within my house in the integrity of my heart.
3   I will set no worthless thing before my eyes;
     I hate the work of those who fall away;
     It shall not cling to me.
4   A perverse heart shall leave me;
     I will know no evil.
5   Whoever secretly slanders his neighbor, him I will destroy;
     I will not endure one who has a haughty look and an arrogant heart.

6   My eyes shall be upon the faithful of the land, that they may dwell with me;
     One who walks in a blameless way is one who will serve me.
7   One who practices deceit shall not dwell within my house;
     One who speaks lies shall not maintain his position before me.
8   Every morning I will destroy all the wicked of the land,
     So as to eliminate from the city of the Lord all those who do injustice.

TODAY'S THOUGHTS AND MEDITATION:

There are things we should practice when we are at church, at work or in public, and most especially when we are at home (verse 2).  I understand that the home is a "safe place", but it should not be used as a "safe place" to sin or allow attitudes to become ungodly.  God sees and knows everything!  As well, our parents, spouses and/or children will have a sense that things are amiss, and hypocritical.  Whether good or bad, whatever we do and say will become an example for others to follow.

As for removing people from a house (verse 7) if and when they practice deceit, this should not include minors.  Back in those days, and in many other cultures, adult children and their families continue to live within the parents' estate.  But even now, I know of many cases where adult children continue living at home, or move back into the parent's home for various reasons.  This is fine, unless they become disruptive or destructive in any way.

Just as an example, if there is an adult family member who is abusing drugs or alcohol (which most often comes with lying and stealing), they either need to agree to go to rehab, or they need to be removed.  Otherwise, by allowing them to remain and enjoy the comforts of home, you are saying to them and others - "this is okay".  Remember though, that everything we do, should be done with God's love, compassion and wisdom.

Definitely it is not easy to confront these types of issues the right way, but in situations that are hard, there are no easy solutions.  If you truly love the person who is struggling, you will not want to "love them to death" by enabling them (giving them food, shelter, money... a safe place to practice sin).  You will need to find reliable professionals to help them as well as yourself and anyone else affected.  Remember, if there are other people in your house, you should also be loving and protecting them!  

If you are dealing with minors who are struggling with something, now you really need to get reliable professional help.  You CAN and SHOULD!  And being the parent, you still have legal say over what they do.  In fact, if anything bad happens, you will be considered responsible to some degree in the eyes of the law.  

Best yet, as parents or guardians over children, right from the earliest age - wisely and lovingly be teaching them in the way they should go throughout their lives.  Fairly handle situations as they come up, assessing if it was truly an accident and/or a mistake which comes with remorse.  Discipline them appropriately when needed - when they have defiantly disobeyed (verse 5).  Pray for them constantly!  And most importantly, be a good example of integrity wherever you go, especially at home!

In order to keep walking with integrity in God's will, here are a few things we need to keep in our hearts and minds - NOT to force others to do, but for us to do personally, because Christianity is all about a personal relationship with the Lord:

- (v. 2)  pray and wait on the Lord for His help and guidance

- (v. 1)  trust the Lord, that He will take care of the evil that is happening around us

- (v. 3)  hate evil and sinful deeds, but not the people who commit them

- (v.7)  do not condone or enable sinful behavior

- (v. 3)  do not desire anything evil or desire to commit any sinful acts

- (v. 8)  daily put away anything that is evil and sinful

- (v. 4)  confess any sin we have committed, or even sin that is in our hearts

- (v. 5)  defend the innocent and bring justice to the guilty

- (v. 2)  be careful with what we say and do 

- (v. 2)  keep our focus on doing God's will to be more God-like

- (v. 6)  work together faithfully, supporting and serving one another

- (v. 1)  sing praises to the Lord and be thankful