Running in God's path

Psalms 119:32 (NIV)

³²I run in the path of your commands,

for you have set my heart free.

Have you ever brought your child to a mall, or an open park, and watch him run as if he had been set free from the four walls of your house?  Or maybe you've seen other children doing that, running around enjoying the free space that he has in a mall or a park.  That is so natural for a kid who has been couped up in a house for days, or being in a classroom for days, and then set free to run in an open space.  He feels he can run as fast as he can, as far as he can, anywhere he wants to go!

That seems like what the writer of Psalm 119 is describing.  He wrote "I run in the paths of your commands".  He did not describe obedience to God's commands as crawling, or struggling, or even walking.  He was running.  And why not?  The second half of the verse says "for you have set my heart free!".
Does this describe how we walk in God's commands everyday?  There are some people who call themselves Christian, and yet continue to be rebellious of God's commands.  If ever they do obey, it is with hesitance, and even resistance.  The obedience is seen in their actions, but in their hearts it was a struggle.  They seem to be crawling in the path of God's commands.

A true believer is running in God's path.  Why?  He or she knows that he/she has been set free!
John 8:34 (NIV)
³⁴Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a slave to sin.
John 8:36 (NIV)
³⁶So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.

We were slaves to sin, imprisoned in the desires of our sinful nature, not able to walk according to God's command.  We would try, but we would eventually fail.
Christ's death on the cross set us free from the hold of sin over our life.  If you believe that, you are now free from the hold that sin has over your mind and body, and you can now obey God by the power of the Holy Spirit who indwells you!
Now that you are free, you can run in the paths of God's commands.  It becomes a joy, a desire in our hearts.  That doesn't mean there is no struggle -yes, the battle will still be there between our flesh and the new desires of our heart, but the joy of following God and His commands remains.
Look what the apostle John says:
1 John 5:3 (NIV)
³This is love for God: to obey his commands. And his commands are not burdensome,

His commands are not burdensome.  They are, in fact, a joy to the heart of a Christian.
All, of course, by His grace and strength.