deal bountifully with your servant, that i may live and keep your word. [psalm 119:17]
“bountiful” is not a term we use every day–it means generous, but it has the imagery of overflowing, abundant, over-the-top, lavishly generous. the psalmist puts himself in the lowly role of a servant, and is pleading with God to bless him–not with riches, but with mercy. not with things, but with salvation, not with the approval of the world but with grace, with the knowledge of the will of his word. what is important to the servant is living in and keeping God’s word.
God is faithful to do just that.
blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. in love he predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved. in him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth. [ephesians 1:3-10 emphasis mine]
he fulfills his promises to lavish us with the riches of his grace, he has dealt bountifully to show us wisdom and insight to make known to us the mystery of his will–through his Word, through his Son, Jesus!
do you pray for riches? do you pray for circumstances? do you ever plead with the God of the universe to deal bountifully with you, and what you mean by bountiful is that you would fully live into the purposes of God by relying on Jesus?
know yourself dealt with bountifully today–know that God has lavished the riches of his grace upon you through Christ!
~conor eastman