“Search me, O God, and know my heart; try [test] me and know my anxieties [worries, cares]; and see if there is any wicked [or, more probably, idolatrous] way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting” (Psalm 139:23-24).
David first affirms that God already knows everything about him (verses 1-22) and then asks for a total examination of his heart - his inner being, including his thoughts and motives; his worries and fears; and any ungodly inclination or action within him.
Do we have the courage to invite the Lord to do the same sort of comprehensive spiritual health exam?
Why not? He already knows everything about us.
David is really requesting not only that God know – which he does already – but that he make known the results of his examination, just as we want the doctor to share with us the results of lab tests.
To be honest, however, just as we sometimes dread those results, we know that we need them in order to get well.
Keenly aware of his own tendency to go astray, David concludes by asking God to lead him in the way that leads to eternal life.
We know that way to be Jesus, who is “the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6).
Let us, likewise, come boldly to God with a sincere request that he probe every part of us and show us how to walk more closely with our loving Lord.