PRAISE AND PAIN
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Opening Prayer
Lord, help me to grow in my understanding of worship; enable me to worship you as you deserve.
Read PSALM 25
For additional translations of the passage, use this link to Bible Gateway.
Psalm 25
1In you, Lord my God, I put my trust.
2I trust in you; do not let me be put to shame, nor let my enemies triumph over me.
3No one who hopes in you will ever be put to shame, but shame will come on those who are treacherous without cause.
4Show me your ways, Lord, teach me your paths.
5Guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long.
6Remember, Lord, your great mercy and love, for they are from of old.
7Do not remember the sins of my youth and my rebellious ways; according to your love remember me, for you, Lord, are good.
8Good and upright is the Lord; therefore he instructs sinners in his ways.
9He guides the humble in what is right and teaches them his way.
10All the ways of the Lord are loving and faithful toward those who keep the demands of his covenant.
11For the sake of your name, Lord, forgive my iniquity, though it is great.
12Who, then, are those who fear the Lord? He will instruct them in the ways they should choose.
13They will spend their days in prosperity, and their descendants will inherit the land.
14The Lord confides in those who fear him; he makes his covenant known to them.
15My eyes are ever on the Lord, for only he will release my feet from the snare.
16Turn to me and be gracious to me, for I am lonely and afflicted.
17Relieve the troubles of my heart and free me from my anguish.
18Look on my affliction and my distress and take away all my sins.
19See how numerous are my enemies and how fiercely they hate me!
20Guard my life and rescue me; do not let me be put to shame, for I take refuge in you.
21May integrity and uprightness protect me, because my hope, Lord, is in you.
22Deliver Israel, O God, from all their troubles!
Reflect
Sunday, the first day of the week, is ‘resurrection day.’ What have been your experiences of new life in Jesus in this past week?The psalms are the Bible’s primer in prayer. They scale the heights of praise and plumb the depths of human experience, often without pausing for breath. Psalm 25 is a prime example.
Apart from the brief mention of enemies in verse 2, the first part of the psalm is taken up with a thirst to know God better (vv. 4, 5), and with strong affirmations of his goodness and love. He is the Savior (v. 5), merciful and loving (v. 6), good and upright (v. 8), the giver of prosperity (v. 13) and revelation (v. 14).
And then the twist. This high praise of God’s goodness comes from someone who is in a very painful and vulnerable place. He is lonely (v. 16), in anguish and inner turmoil (v .17), and facing enemies who are putting his very life at risk (vv. 19, 20).
Very often, prayer happens at the interface of pain and praise. With eyes fixed on the goodness of God (v. 15), we lay our despair before him, because only if we still believe he is worthy of our praise can we cry out, ‘I trust in you … my hope, Lord, is in you’ (vv. 2, 21).
Apply
Do you know anyone who is ‘alone’ or even ‘in deep distress’ (v. 16)? How might you encourage them?
Closing prayer
Lord God, please show me how I can be a blessing to someone who needs encouragement this week. Enable me to point them to your goodness and love.
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