If it's Broken, Get It Fixed! 
Great is your mercy, O LORD; give me life according to your rules. Psalm 119:156
There is a phrase I’ve heard many times, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” Of course the thought is that when something is working fine, don’t play around with it. I’ve found this to be true for a lot of things like cars, computers, plumbing (especially plumbing), etc. It’s been my experience that whenever I fiddle with something thinking I can improve it, it’s going to break and definitely need fixing. This is all fine and dandy when something is not broken, but often things that appear to be working fine are really limping along and in desperate need of repair.
Sometimes I think a lazy apathetic man came up with the saying, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” If we are honest with ourselves, we would find that many times spiritually we are more broken than we think. It seems that all too often we pride ourselves on how good we are which causes us to pretend that we don’t have any problems. Boy, how we love to cover our problems.
Jesus addressed this mindset when He said, ‘Because you say, “I am rich, and have become wealthy, and have need of nothing,” and you do not know that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked, I advise you to buy from Me gold refined by fire, that you may become rich, and white garments, that you may clothe yourself, and that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed; and eye salve to anoint your eyes, that you may see. ‘Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline; be zealous therefore, and repent.” (Revelation 3:17-19).
We believe we don’t need anything from God so therefore we are not looking for any solutions. It’s only when we see that we are wretched, miserable, poor, blind and naked, that we can find help. I think this is one of the dangers about things going well in life, we think everything is okay when it is not.
Have you ever found yourself going down the road and for like the third time you’ve tried to get a drink from a cup that had a lid on it, but it was empty? If I actually look down and see I have an empty glass, it is easy to take it to the faucet and fill it with water. But if I think that it is full, then I will never go fill it up. This is the way it is with our spiritual lives. It is in Christ that we find the river of life and yet we do not go to Him for help.
I find it ironic that we are talking about where to really look for life and we are learning that it is from God and His Word. The Psalmist also said in Psalm 119:9-11, How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to your word. With my whole heart I seek you; let me not wander from your commandments! I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you. It is this great need and love for God’s Word that is the starting place in our journey toward abundant life.
The impact of God’s Word starts when we, like the Psalmist, have faith that God really can and wants to speak to us right now through His Holy Word. Notice in our text he says, “Great is Your mercy, O Lord.” The Psalmist is humbling himself before God. Mercies are a picture of how God pitied us in our poor situation and rescued us. Do your thoughts convince you that His mercies are great? Do you find yourself starting to worship and admire Him because of His great mercies? The degree of mercy that we show to others is dependent on the amount of mercy that we have perceived ourselves to have received from Him.
Notice the Psalmist says next “give me life”. The Psalmist seems so spiritual but yet desires to have more life. He realizes how spiritually impoverished he is. “Blessed is the poor in spirit for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:3). Am I spiritually poor or dead? Where am I not doing well? Do I even know where I am dead? Could it be a poor prayer life, lack of mercy, insensitivity to His Word? Ask the Lord to forgive you and genuinely plead from the heart, “Lord, give me life!”
Finally, notice the Psalmist says, “according to Your rules.” Remember that new life comes through the way we view God’s Word allowing it to shape our lives. Do I believe the only way I can improve any aspect of my life is through God’s Word? The point is, we put our effort into what we believe can help us. If we do not believe it is helpful or relevant to us, we hardly listen. But when we know that the Lord has special insights to impact our lives, our eyes brighten up. We start paying close attention. We begin in faith to start looking at what He has to say to us. I’m talking about the confidence that our Creator has something to say to us that is very important to our lives. We all need God’s Word to challenge the very way that we think, approach things, and make decisions. Only as much as you dare to expose your thoughts to God’s Word, will you grow in your love for God. Many of us do not think we are ‘broken’ yet if life seems less than abundant we need to remember to seek the Lord and His perspective for the grace and abundant life that only comes from Him.
