Psalm 37:6
“And he shall bring forth thy righteousness as the light, and thy judgment as the noonday.”
A young evangelist recently asked me about some of the obstacles he would face as an evangelist. There are many obstacles an evangelist will face, but one of the glaring obstacles is realizing spiritual results. Evangelists often get to see immediate results in their ministry, but realizing long-term results will be hard to see. Let me explain. Pastors and church members get to see immediate results as well, but they also get to see the long term results of their service to the LORD because they are in one place for many years. On the other hand, an evangelist doesn’t get to see those long term results unless the LORD brings them across the path of those whom they helped many years prior. If I hadn’t followed the steps from Psalm 37, I would have never realized spiritual results in my ministry.
One of your great desires as a Christian should be to see spiritual results that are lasting. John 15:16 says, “Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain:” The Devil would love to discourage us from realizing spiritual results, but we must keep on following the steps of Psalm 37 is we are going to realize spiritual results in our Christian life. Let me show you the steps it takes to realize them.
First, you must trust God. Verse 3 says, “Trust in the LORD, and do good;…” Notice, God says to trust Him “and do good.” In other words, trust God that He is right and do good. You must not let discouragement keep you from doing right. You must trust what the LORD says to do is the right thing to do. We can often wonder if what we are doing is really going to pay off, but you simply have to trust God and His Word. If God says what you’re doing is right, then trust Him that good will come from your actions.
Second, you must delight yourself in God’s ways. Verse 4 says, “Delight thyself also in the LORD;…” When one delights in God’s ways, they are getting their pleasure from serving Him. Let me ask you, from whence are you seeking pleasure in life? Your seeking of pleasure should come from serving God. Stop looking for pleasure from sources other than serving the LORD.
Third, you must be committed to God’s way. Verse 5 says, “Commit thy way unto the LORD; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass.” Friend, you’ve got to be committed that God’s way is right. If you’re not committed, then you will quit before you see results. Commitment is deciding you are going to do something whether or not it works. Commitment is being sold on what you’re doing. That is true commitment! Commitment says that no matter what results God’s way brings, you are going to do them. If heartache, trials and persecution comes, you are still going to do them. Commitment to God’s ways is doing them because they are right to do.
Notice what happens when you do these three things, “And he shall bring forth thy righteousness as the light,…” The realization for doing right comes to light. In other words, you will see the fruit of doing right, but you must stick to it.
Have you almost given up on doing right? If you’re not trusting God’s Word, and seeking pleasure in His ways, or committed to them, then you won’t realize spiritual results. I challenge you to be committed to God’s ways. Get sold on His ways and you will find the spiritual results you desire.