Good morning, everyone!
Today I read Psalms 86-89, and I'll be focusing on Psalm 86, a prayer of David.
Incline Your ear, O LORD, and answer me; for I am afflicted and needy. Preserve my soul, for I am a godly man; O You my God, save Your servant who trusts in You. Be gracious to me, O LORD, for to You I cry all day long. Make glad the soul of Your servant, For to You, O LORD, I lift up my soul. For You, O LORD, are good, and ready to forgive, and abundant in lovingkindness to all who call upon You. Give ear, O LORD, to my prayer, and give heed to the voice of my supplications! In the day of my trouble I shall call upon You, for You will answer me. There is no one like You among the gods, O LORD, nor are there any works like Yours. All nations whom You have made shall come and worship before You, O LORD, and they shall glorify Your name. For You are great and do wondrous deeds; You alone are God.
Teach me Your way, O LORD; I will walk in Your truth; unite my heart to fear Your name. I will give thanks to You, O LORD, my God, with all my heart, and will glorify Your name forever. For Your lovingkindness toward me is great, and You have delivered my soul from the depths of Sheol. O God, arrogant men have risen up against me, and a band of violent men have sought my life, and they have not set You before them. But You, O LORD, are a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abundant in lovingkindness and truth. Turn to me, and be gracious to me; oh grant Your strength to Your servant, and save the son of Your handmaid. Show me a sign for good, that those who hate me may see it and be ashamed, because You, O LORD, have helped me and comforted me.
In this psalm, David cries to God for help because he is being pursued by his enemies (possibly Saul). He asks God to make his soul glad, even in the midst of trouble, and to teach him God's ways. He ends the Psalm by declaring who God is, His character and what He has already done for David.
What I really like about David's prayer psalms is that they are good examples of how to pray. Now, you might hear it taught, as I have, that you should first speak to God in gratitude before asking for anything, and I agree that's a good way to pray. I try to do that myself. However, if you're upset or in the middle of a storm, sometimes we forget that. So, I think David's prayer psalms are a good example of how to pray in those instances.
1) Cry out to God and tell Him what's troubling you.
2) Praise God for how mighty He is
3) Ask God to help you and teach you.
4) Thank God for what He has already done
5) Remind God of His character, who He is, and His promises.
6) Ask for an answer to your prayer, reminding yourself of how God has already helped you.
And that's what I got out of this psalm.
But something I want to mention is that prayer is not an exact formula. David's psalms are great examples, but you don't have to follow them exactly. They were written for David and his problems.
Jesus taught us how to pray, and it's an example we should try to emulate.
But prayer is an intimate conversation between yourself and God, with whom you are striving to have a personal relationship. So when you pray, just talk to God. Don't worry about praying perfectly. Don't worry about having a formula, though if you need one, you can find them throughout the Bible.
Just talk to God. If something is troubling you, He wants to hear it. If something is going well for you, He wants to hear it. If you need something, He wants to hear it. If you have a dream or a desire, He wants to hear it.
And just because you don't get an answer to something immediately, doesn't mean He isn't listening. Sometimes God asks us to wait so that we can learn and grow before we get what we ask for.
Remember, David was on the run from Saul for many years, and in that time he had to learn to rely on God more than he already did.
I hope you'll join me tomorrow when I read Psalms 90-95.
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