Joel M Bradshaw

11Come, O children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the LORD. 12What man is there who desires life and loves many days, that he may see good? 13Keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking deceit.
14Turn away from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it.–Psalm 34

When we experience fear we pursue desires. A desire for safety. A desire for peace. A desire for escape. A desire for security. Here in the psalm there is a desire for life and for goodness. And yet I put forward that to fear God is to desire his way most and to be intentional about that guiding your life.

The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction. (Proverbs 1:7)

1. SPEECH. Your new desire is to be honest with yourself and others. Using your words to edify and encourage rather than to divide and destroy.
2. ACTIONS. Your new life is more of an either/or than a both/and. You are to pursue goodness at the expense of desiring to do evil.
3. ATTITUDES. As your words and actions change, you use your influence to pursue peace and reconciliation. The Gospel’s impact thus flows from the vertical (you and God) to the horizontal (you and others).

If you fear God most then you should desire most to change according to what honors Him most.–JMB