DEPENDING ON HIM
Opening Prayer
Father in Heaven, thank you for the gift of your Word, for without it I could not know you and would never understand the depths of your great love for me.
Read PSALM 119:153–176
For additional translations of the passage, use this link to Bible Gateway.
For additional translations of the passage, use this link to Bible Gateway.
ר Resh
153 Look on my suffering and deliver me,
for I have not forgotten your law.
154 Defend my cause and redeem me;
preserve my life according to your promise.
155 Salvation is far from the wicked,
for they do not seek out your decrees.
156 Your compassion, Lord, is great;
preserve my life according to your laws.
157 Many are the foes who persecute me,
but I have not turned from your statutes.
158 I look on the faithless with loathing,
for they do not obey your word.
159 See how I love your precepts;
preserve my life, Lord, in accordance with your love.
160 All your words are true;
all your righteous laws are eternal.
ש Sin and Shin
161 Rulers persecute me without cause,
but my heart trembles at your word.
162 I rejoice in your promise
like one who finds great spoil.
163 I hate and detest falsehood
but I love your law.
164 Seven times a day I praise you
for your righteous laws.
165 Great peace have those who love your law,
and nothing can make them stumble.
166 I wait for your salvation, Lord,
and I follow your commands.
167 I obey your statutes,
for I love them greatly.
168 I obey your precepts and your statutes,
for all my ways are known to you.
ת Taw
169 May my cry come before you, Lord;
give me understanding according to your word.
170 May my supplication come before you;
deliver me according to your promise.
171 May my lips overflow with praise,
for you teach me your decrees.
172 May my tongue sing of your word,
for all your commands are righteous.
173 May your hand be ready to help me,
for I have chosen your precepts.
174 I long for your salvation, Lord,
and your law gives me delight.
175 Let me live that I may praise you,
and may your laws sustain me.
176 I have strayed like a lost sheep.
Seek your servant,
for I have not forgotten your commands.
New International Version (NIV)Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Reflect
Be still. If you have a special place to pray, go there now, away from distraction. Be prayerful as you read today’s verses, pausing every time any words or phrases prompt you to pray.In these verses the terms ‘law(s)’, ‘decrees’, ‘statutes’, ‘your word’, ‘precepts’, and ‘commands’ all reflect different aspects of God communicating himself and his will. For us, this is the Bible or Scriptures. It seems that, the tougher life got for the psalm-writer, the more he relied on God and his promise-giving, love-expressing, joy-inducing, peace-spreading, delightful Word (vv. 154, 159, 162, 165, 174). Could I say the same thing of myself? And could you? Take a moment to reflect on this.
Three times the psalmist called out to God to save his life (vv. 154, 156, 159), waiting and longing for the salvation that only God could bring (vv. 166, 174). In other words, the psalm-writer’s heart was made for heaven.
So, this part of Psalm 119 reflects Habakkuk’s declaration of trust in God (Habakkuk 3:16–19). He and the psalmist both say, in effect: ‘I don’t know what may happen in the future. It may be full of good things, or really bad news. But, either way, I trust in God and in the end, he will make everything work together for good.’
Apply
When things haven’t turned out as you expected, how quick are you to assume that God had something better for you?
Closing prayer
Father, I don’t always understand why you allow things that are happening in my life, but I do trust that you will carry your purposes, that you will bless me and show me more of your power and love.
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