Hold Up My Goings: The Believer's Prayer on Slippery Paths

"Hold up my goings in Thy paths, that my footsteps slip not." — Psalm 16:6

The blessing of sanctified affliction is that we are made to see our weakness. David here stretches out his hand like a little child, crying to his Father: "Hold up my goings."

I. The Believer's Position Is Often a Very Slippery One

Christ told us, "In the world ye shall have tribulation." We are sent into the world to glorify God's holy law through simple faith in Jesus. Yet even in God's paths, we face peril. Liberty may degenerate into licence; holy caution into legalism; activity into neglect of communion with God. Reliance in Christ can fade into forgetfulness of the Spirit of Christ.

II. The Petition Expresses Helplessness and Faith

"Hold up my goings"—"I can do nothing, cannot stir a step, without Thee." This is the omnipotence of weakness. In verse 6, David declares, "I know that Thou wilt hear me." How simple, yet how strong, this faith. It testifies of an upright conscience and recalls God's past dealings.

III. True Religion Is Walking in God's Marked Paths

God appears and marks out certain ways in this world, bidding us inquire for them and keep to them. This is true religion—obedience to the Divine call. It is ceasing to live at random and learning to live as Yahweh dictates. The prayer implies a lively apprehension of the evil consequences of falling from these paths.