Psalm 73:1-28
Lord,
it’s so easy for us to lose our way – “my feet had almost stumbled.” We
look at “the prosperity of the wicked”, and we become “envious of the
arrogant” (Psalm 73:2-3). When others are forgetting about You, help us
to keep on saying, “For me, it is good to be near God! – in “the
sanctuary of God” (Psalm 73:28). When we leave the place of worship,
help us to tell others what You “have done” for us. Help us to say to
others, “O magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt His Name together”
(Psalm 34:3).
Psalm 74:1-23
Lord,
You have “redeemed” us. You have brought “salvation” to us (Psalm
74:2,12). We rejoice in the Old Testament story of redemption
(Deuteronomy 7:8). We have much greater joy when we think of Jesus: “In
Him we have redemption through His blood.” This is “the Gospel of our
salvation.” It is “good news of a great joy.” Through faith in Him, we
“rejoice with unutterable and exalted joy.” We look forward to “the
salvation of our souls.” We say “Hallelujah! Salvation ans glory and
power belong to our God” (Ephesians 1:7,13; Luke 2:10; 1 Peter 1:5,8-9;
Revelation 19:1).
Psalms 75:1-76:12
“We give
thanks to You, O God … I will rejoice for ever, I will sing praises to
the God of Jacob. Make your vows to the Lord your God, and perform them”
(Psalm 785:1,9; Psalm 76:11). Teach us, Lord, that true rejoicing in
You is more than singing praise to You. Teach us to live what we sing.
“Fill Thou our life, O Lord our God, in every part with praise.” “Take
my life, and let it be consecrated, Lord, to Thee.” Such words are not
to be forgotten as soon as we leave the place of worship. They’re more
than words for singing. They’re words for living. How, Lord, can we live
a life of praise and consecration? – “I can do all things through
Christ who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:13).
Psalm 77:1-20
Sometimes,
Lord, we have more questions than answers (Psalm 77:7-9). The questions
keep flooding into our minds. We wonder where the answers are going to
come from. What, Lord, are we to do when this happens? We remember what
You have done for us (Psalm 77:11-12). Help us, Lord, to look back over
the “years” – and remember that Your “hand” has been upon us (Psalm
77:5,10). May the memories of Your many blessings fill us with strength –
to face the future with confidence in You. Help us, Lord. to trust in
You – and be truly happy.
Psalm 78:1-39
When,
Lord, we’re asking the question, “Can God spread a table in the
wilderness?” (Psalm 78:19), help us to hear Your answer: “You prepare a
table before me in the presence of my enemies.” At Your “table”, You
bless us – “You anoint my head with oil, my cup overflows” (Psalm 23:5).
Help us to come to Jesus, Your Son. He is our Saviour. Help us to come
to His “table”, to drink from “the cup of salvation” and to be “anointed
with the oil of gladness” (Psalm 116:7; Psalm 45:7).
Psalm 78:40-72
Lord,
You led Your people out of Egypt, through the desert and into Your
“holy land” (Psalm 78:52, 42-43,51,54-55). You did great things for
Israel. You do great things for us – “You restore our soul. You lead us
in the paths of righteousness for Your Name’s sake” (Psalm 23:3). We
thank You, Lord, for Your many blessings – “peace with God”, standing in
Your “grace”, “our hope of sharing the glory of God”, “Your love poured
into our hearts through the Holy Spirit” (Romans 5:1-5).
Psalm 79:1-13
So
many people are turning away from You, Lord. They no longer worship
You. We wonder, “Can things be turned around?” It would be so easy to
give up and go the way of the world. “Help us, O God of our salvation”
(Psalm 79:9) – to keep on praising You: “We, Your people, the flock which
You shepherd, will give thanks to You forever. We will praise You
throughout every generation” (Psalm 79:13).
Psalm 80:1-19
“Restore
us, O God, make Your face shine upon us, that we may be saved” (Psalm
80:3). When, Lord, we come to You with the question of salvation – “What
must I do to be saved?”, You come to us with Your answer – “Believe in the
Lord Jesus, and you will be saved” (Acts 16:30-31). In Christ, You have
“blessed us with every spiritual blessing” (Ephesians 1:3). Thank You,
Lord.
Psalm 81:1-16
“Sing aloud to
God; shout for joy to the God of Jacob” (Psalm 81:1). Teach us, Lord, to
worship You with joy. You have blessed us in the past: “I am the Lord
your God, who brings you out of the land of Egypt.” You will bless us in
the future: “Open your mouth wide, and I will fill it” (Psalm 81:10).
Help us, Lord, to thank You for Your past blessings, and to trust You
for Your future blessings.
Psalms 82:1-83:18
“A
friend loves at all times” (Proverbs 17:17). Help us, Lord, to look
beyond human love and human friendship. Help us to see Jesus. His love
is the greatest love. He is our greatest Friend. Thank You, Lord, for
Jesus. Thank You for His love. He’s our Forever Friend. May we know, in
our hearts, that His love is ‘always and forever’ love.
Psalm 84:1-12
‘How
I love Your Temple, Almighty Lord! How I want to be there! I long to be
in the Lord’s Temple. With my whole being I sing for joy to the living
God’(Psalm 84:1-2). Lord, we read these words, and we know that this is
much more than paying lip-service to You. This is real. ‘I long for You,
O God. I thirst for You, the living God; when can I go and worship in
Your presence’(Psalm 42:1-2). ‘Let Your light and Your truth guide me…
to the place where You dwell. Then will I go to the altar of God, to
God, my joy and my delight…’(Psalm 43:4). Here, Lord, we meet a man who
found great joy in worshipping You.‘O God, You are my God, and I long
for You. My whole being desires You… my soul is thirsty for You’(Psalm
63:1). Here, Lord, we meet a man who worshipped You with his whole
heart. This is real worship, joyful worship, heartfelt worship. Lord,
help us to worship You like that!
Psalm 85:1-13
Help
us, Lord, to pray for revival – ‘Restore us again, O God our Saviour…
Will You not revive us again that Your people may rejoice in You?’(Psalm
85:4,6). Help us to pray that You will ‘grant us Your salvation.’ Help
us to pray that ‘Your saving presence will remain in our land’, that
‘Your glory may dwell in our land’(Psalm 85:7,9). Help us to pray for
real listening – ‘I will listen to what God the Lord will say’- , a real
turning to You – ‘turning to You in our hearts’- , and a real sense of
Your blessing – ‘You will speak peace to Your people’(Psalm 85:8). Teach
us, Lord, that prayer for revival does not begin as a prayer for
others. It begins with ourselves: ‘O Holy Ghost, revival comes from
Thee; send a revival – start the work in me’. It begins with this prayer: “Lord, take my life, and make it wholly Thine; fill my poor heart with Thy great love divine.’
Psalm 86:1-17
‘You
are forgiving and good, O Lord, abounding in love to all who call to
you… Teach me Your way, O Lord, and I will walk in Your truth… I will
praise You, O Lord my God, with all my heart… For great is Your love
towards me’(Psalm 86:5,11-13). Lord, You love us. You forgive our sins.
We receive Your love. We want to love You more. Your love inspires our
praise – ‘I will praise You…’. Your love inspires our prayer – ‘Teach me
Your way…’. Our whole life is to be a celebration of Your love – ‘Great
is Your love towards me.’ We are to celebrate Your love with ‘joy’(Psalm
86:4). We rejoice in You because of who You are - ‘You, O Lord, are a
compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and
faithfulness’- and what You have done for us – ‘You, O Lord, have helped
me and comforted me’(Psalm 86:15,17).
Psalm 87:1-7
‘Glorious
things are said of you, O city of God… The Lord will write in the
register of the peoples: “This one was born in Zion”. As they make music
they will sing, “All my fountains are in You”’(Psalm 87:3,6-7). We
thank You, Lord, that the ‘city of God’ is our glorious destination –
‘we are looking for the city that is to come’, ‘the Holy City’(Hebrews
13:14; Revelation 21:2). It is also the place of our heavenly birth –
‘This one was born in Zion’. The heavenly birth – This is where our
journey to the ‘city of God’ begins: ‘No one can see the Kingdom of God
without being born from above’(John 3:3). Between our heavenly birth and
our glorious destination, there is life in the Spirit: As we journey
with You, in this life in the Spirit, may we thank You for the words of
the Psalmist - ‘All my fountains are in You’ – and the promise of
Jesus: ‘Rivers of living water shall flow from the heart of anyone who
believes in Me’(John 7:38).
Psalm 88:1-18
Lord,
we see the Psalmist ‘down in the dumps.’ He feels like he is ‘in the
depths of the Pit.” He feels like he is ‘in the darkest depths’(Psalm
88:6). This is the way he feels, but he has not stopped praying – ‘O
Lord, the God who saves me, day and night I cry out before You… I call
to You, O Lord, every day… I cry to You for help, O Lord; in the morning
my prayer comes before You’(Psalm 88:1,9,13). Lord, we read his prayer –
and it doesn’t make pleasant reading: ‘My soul is full of trouble… I am
like a man without strength… Your wrath lies heavily upon me… the
darkness is my closest friend’(Psalm 88:3-4,7,18). How can we be helped
when we feel like this? We thank You, Lord, that we can be helped by
Jesus. He knows what it feels like. For us, He has entered the ‘darkness’- ‘My God, my God, why have You forsaken Me?’ For us, He has triumphed – ‘risen from the dead’(Matthew 27:45-46; 28:5-7). Thank You, Lord, for Jesus, our great Saviour.
Psalm 89:1-37
‘I
will sing of the Lord’s great love for ever; with my mouth I will make
known Your faithfulness through all generations’(Psalm 89:1). Lord, we
read these words from so long ago. Many generations have come and gone
since these words were written. The years come and go. The centuries run
their course. One generation gives way to another generation. Time
moves on relentlessly. None of us can halt the march of time. Many
changes have taken place over the course of time. We thank You, Lord,
that there is something that has never changed – Your great love for us.
As we think of Your great love, may we say, in our hearts – The Lord is
to be praised ‘for ever.’ He is to be praised ‘through all
generations.’ Help us to look back and remember that Jesus Christ was
crucified for us, that He has risen for us. We thank You, Lord, for the
Good News which inspires our praise: ‘I will sing of the Lord’s great
love for ever…’
Psalms 89:38-90:17
‘Lord,
You have been our dwelling place throughout all generations… From
everlasting to everlasting, You are God’(Psalm 90:1-2). Lord, we read
the words, ‘In the beginning, God…’, and we know, in our hearts, that
You are ‘the eternal God.’ You are ‘the high and exalted One.’ You
are the God ‘who inhabits eternity.’ You are the God ‘who lives for
ever.’ You have no beginning. You have no end. You are ‘the beginning
and the end.’ Our life on earth has a beginning. It has an end. We trust
in You, ‘the eternal God.’ We rejoice in Your precious promises – ‘The
eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms’; ‘I
have loved you with an everlasting love’; ‘The free gift of God is
eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord’(Genesis 1:1; Deuteronomy
33:27; Isaiah 57:15; Revelation 21:6; Jeremiah 31:3; Romans 6:23).
Psalm 91:1-16
‘Surely
He will save you from the traps of the hunter’(Psalm 91:3). Lord, You
have given us Your warning. We must ‘be alert’- ‘Your enemy the devil
prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.’ You
have also given us Your promise – ‘Resist the devil, and he will flee
from you.’ How are we to resist the devil? – We are to ‘resist him,
standing firm in the faith’(1 Peter 5:8-9; James 4:7). Help us not to
try to resist the devil in our own strength. We will be defeated. He is
much more powerful than we are. Help us to resist him in the strength of
our Lord Jesus Christ. In Christ, we have the victory – ‘Thanks be to
God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ’(1
Corinthians 15:57). Help us never to forget that Satan is out to get us.
He’s trying to trap us. Help us never to forget this: Jesus is able to
‘deliver us from the evil one’(Matthew 6:13).
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