Psalm 86:11
      Teach me your way, LORD, 
         that I may rely on your faithfulness; 
         give me an undivided heart, 
         that I may fear your name. 

The New International Version (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2011), Ps 86:11.

    Teach me your ways, O LORD, 
      that I may live according to your truth! 
    Grant me purity of heart, 
      so that I may honor you. 

Tyndale House Publishers, Holy Bible: New Living Translation (Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 2015), Ps 86:11.

         Train me, GOD, to walk straight;
                 then I’ll follow your true path.
                 Put me together, one heart and mind;
                 then, undivided, I’ll worship in joyful fear.

Eugene H. Peterson, The Message: The Bible in Contemporary Language (Colorado Springs, CO: NavPress, 2005), Ps 86:11.

—

Yesterday began earlier than most Saturdays. It included over three hours of driving, a lot of sitting, a lot of listening, and a little bit of teaching and training. Leaving before breakfast and arriving home at dinnertime on an off day knocks a person out of his or her routine. 

It was a beautiful day and warmer than most this time of year. A long walk with my bride and our dogs worked out some of the kinks and creases of travel. 

Our Lead Dog, Ollie the Border Collie, has a new harness. He would prefer to live unleashed. So would we. Listening to Mark Miller’s new book, Smart Leadership, I learned what the most important part of a kite is. It is not the tail, which was my first guess. It is not the frame or the material. It is the string. Without the tension of the string, the kite would never fly. 

King David tells us something like this in this psalm. An unleashed life never flies as high as it could otherwise. 

Life at its best requires a lead dog. To fly high and touch the sky, we need a string to supply necessary tension.

The Message paraphrase of this verse helps us soar.

Train me, GOD, to walk straight;
                 then I’ll follow your true path.
                 Put me together, one heart and mind;
                 then, undivided, I’ll worship in joyful fear.

This reminds me of John 15:5: “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.”

Again, listen to The Message and tack on verse 6: 

Life comes with strings attached. Make sure yours is connected to Jesus. This is the only way to fly high, to walk straight, to honor God, and to benefit others.

—

I will live attached to Jesus.

—

Our Father, without your string and without your breeze, I cannot fly. Without your vitality, I shrivel and die. You invite me to abide. Your connection provides life full and meaningful. I joyfully receive any harness, any yoke, anything you bring to keep me close to you. Amen.