What do you really want?
Opening Prayer
Lord, I long for You above all things. I find satisfaction in You alone.
Read PSALM 28:1–9
[1]Of David. To you, LORD, I call; you are my Rock, do not turn a deaf ear to me. For if you remain silent, I will be like those who go down to the pit. [2] Hear my cry for mercy as I call to you for help, as I lift up my hands toward your Most Holy Place. [3] Do not drag me away with the wicked, with those who do evil, who speak cordially with their neighbors but harbor malice in their hearts. [4] Repay them for their deeds and for their evil work; repay them for what their hands have done and bring back on them what they deserve. [5] Because they have no regard for the deeds of the LORD and what his hands have done, he will tear them down and never build them up again. [6] Praise be to the LORD, for he has heard my cry for mercy. [7] The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and he helps me. My heart leaps for joy, and with my song I praise him. [8] The LORD is the strength of his people, a fortress of salvation for his anointed one. [9] Save your people and bless your inheritance; be their shepherd and carry them forever. Scripture taken from the THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION, NIV Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Reflect
What is the progression for the psalmist here?“The mass of (people) live lives of quiet desperation” (David Thoreau). A bit cynical, but possibly true. What is beyond doubt is that only a tiny minority are desperate for God. The psalmist is one of them. He calls, he pleads, he cries out, he lifts up his hands. God, please come, for without your rock-like presence life is unbearable, like falling into a void (1) or into wicked hands (3). Sometimes God seems far away, remote, disinterested even. That may be how you feel just now. The reasons for this sense of absence can be complex, but sometimes it is simply that we are not desperate enough to want him. God responds to the cry of the psalmist. He hears and, as he responds, fear gives way to trust and exultant joy (7). The rock becomes a shield and finally, best of all, a shepherd (9). God is ready to hold and guide you and me, and not just us but his whole church (8,9). Now the psalmist knows that God is with him. God never goes away, of course; it is just that a veil, through sin or circumstance, has come between us.
Apply
Come to God today with a quiet persistence to know his presence.
Closing prayer
God, You long for us. Unveil my eyes to see that You are reaching toward me always.
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