Sunday Gathering for January 12

It was good for me to be afflicted so that I could learn your statutes. Psalm 119:71

When a new year begins, we sometimes think about the year that has passed.  We consider the ways that our lives have gone, often remembering the best memories. Yet, it is important to think about the challenges or afflictions that we faced. In our text this morning, the psalmist dwells on the goodness of God through the treatment that he has experienced. Some of that treatment was in times of affliction. It appears that there were interpersonal challenges and difficulties with other people, but these afflictions were instructional for the writer. As we enter this new year, we also have the opportunity to see the ways that God has worked in the midst of our afflictions, considering how we may dwell on his goodness and how we may put into practice his words and commands.