Psalms

by

Prayer Requests 10-5-19

Anyone have something to share?

Psalm 57

1 Have mercy on me, my God, have mercy on me,
    for in you I take refuge.
   I will take refuge in the shadow of your wings
    until the disaster has passed.

2 I cry out to God Most High,
    to God, who vindicates me.
3 He sends from heaven and saves me,
    rebuking those who hotly pursue me—
    God sends forth his love and his faithfulness.

4 I am in the midst of lions;
    I am forced to dwell among ravenous beasts—
   men whose teeth are spears and arrows,
    whose tongues are sharp swords.

5 Be exalted, O God, above the heavens;
    let your glory be over all the earth.

6 They spread a net for my feet—
    I was bowed down in distress.
   They dug a pit in my path—
    but they have fallen into it themselves.

7 My heart, O God, is steadfast,
    my heart is steadfast;
    I will sing and make music.
8 Awake, my soul!
    Awake, harp and lyre!
    I will awaken the dawn.

9 I will praise you, Lord, among the nations;
    I will sing of you among the peoples.
10 For great is your love, reaching to the heavens;
    your faithfulness reaches to the skies.

11 Be exalted, O God, above the heavens;
    let your glory be over all the earth.

by

Prayer Requests 10-4-19

It’s Friday, so please remember to pray for Mumsee, Mike, and the Nestlings.

Anyone else?

Psalm  56

1 Be merciful to me, my God,
    for my enemies are in hot pursuit;
    all day long they press their attack.
2 My adversaries pursue me all day long;
    in their pride many are attacking me.

3 When I am afraid, I put my trust in you.
4  In God, whose word I praise—
   in God I trust and am not afraid.
    What can mere mortals do to me?

5 All day long they twist my words;
    all their schemes are for my ruin.
6 They conspire, they lurk,
    they watch my steps,
    hoping to take my life.
7 Because of their wickedness do not let them escape;
    in your anger, God, bring the nations down.

8 Record my misery;
    list my tears on your scroll—
    are they not in your record?
9 Then my enemies will turn back
    when I call for help.
    By this I will know that God is for me.

10 In God, whose word I praise,
    in the Lord, whose word I praise—
11 in God I trust and am not afraid.
    What can man do to me?

12 I am under vows to you, my God;
    I will present my thank offerings to you.
13 For you have delivered me from death
    and my feet from stumbling,
   that I may walk before God
    in the light of life.

by

Prayer Requests 10-3-19

It’s Thursday, so don’t forget to pray for Jo, her students, and the people of PNG.

Anyone else?

Psalm 55

1 Listen to my prayer, O God,
    do not ignore my plea;
2  hear me and answer me.
   My thoughts trouble me and I am distraught
3  because of what my enemy is saying,
    because of the threats of the wicked;
   for they bring down suffering on me
    and assail me in their anger.

4 My heart is in anguish within me;
    the terrors of death have fallen on me.
5 Fear and trembling have beset me;
    horror has overwhelmed me.
6 I said, “Oh, that I had the wings of a dove!
    I would fly away and be at rest.
7 I would flee far away
    and stay in the desert;
8 I would hurry to my place of shelter,
    far from the tempest and storm.”

9 Lord, confuse the wicked, confound their words,
    for I see violence and strife in the city.
10 Day and night they prowl about on its walls;
    malice and abuse are within it.
11 Destructive forces are at work in the city;
    threats and lies never leave its streets.

12 If an enemy were insulting me,
    I could endure it;
   if a foe were rising against me,
    I could hide.
13 But it is you, a man like myself,
    my companion, my close friend,
14 with whom I once enjoyed sweet fellowship
    at the house of God,
   as we walked about
    among the worshipers.

15 Let death take my enemies by surprise;
    let them go down alive to the realm of the dead,
    for evil finds lodging among them.

16 As for me, I call to God,
    and the Lord saves me.
17 Evening, morning and noon
    I cry out in distress,
    and he hears my voice.
18 He rescues me unharmed
    from the battle waged against me,
    even though many oppose me.
19 God, who is enthroned from of old,
    who does not change—
   he will hear them and humble them,
    because they have no fear of God.

20 My companion attacks his friends;
    he violates his covenant.
21 His talk is smooth as butter,
    yet war is in his heart;
   his words are more soothing than oil,
    yet they are drawn swords.

22 Cast your cares on the Lord
    and he will sustain you;
   he will never let
    the righteous be shaken.
23 But you, God, will bring down the wicked
    into the pit of decay;
   the bloodthirsty and deceitful
    will not live out half their days.

   But as for me, I trust in you.

by

Prayer Requests 9-30-19

Anyone have something to share?

Psalm 52

1 Why do you boast of evil, you mighty hero?
    Why do you boast all day long,
    you who are a disgrace in the eyes of God?
2 You who practice deceit,
    your tongue plots destruction;
    it is like a sharpened razor.
3 You love evil rather than good,
    falsehood rather than speaking the truth.
4 You love every harmful word,
    you deceitful tongue!

5 Surely God will bring you down to everlasting ruin:
    He will snatch you up and pluck you from your tent;
    he will uproot you from the land of the living.
6 The righteous will see and fear;
    they will laugh at you, saying,
7 “Here now is the man
    who did not make God his stronghold
   but trusted in his great wealth
    and grew strong by destroying others!”

8 But I am like an olive tree
    flourishing in the house of God;
   I trust in God’s unfailing love
    for ever and ever.
9 For what you have done I will always praise you
    in the presence of your faithful people.
   And I will hope in your name,
    for your name is good.

by

Prayer Requests 9-28-19

Anyone have something to share?

Psalm 51

1 Have mercy on me, O God,
    according to your unfailing love;
   according to your great compassion
    blot out my transgressions.
2 Wash away all my iniquity
    and cleanse me from my sin.

3 For I know my transgressions,
    and my sin is always before me.
4 Against you, you only, have I sinned
    and done what is evil in your sight;
   so you are right in your verdict
    and justified when you judge.
5 Surely I was sinful at birth,
    sinful from the time my mother conceived me.
6 Yet you desired faithfulness even in the womb;
    you taught me wisdom in that secret place.

7 Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean;
    wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.
8 Let me hear joy and gladness;
    let the bones you have crushed rejoice.
9 Hide your face from my sins
    and blot out all my iniquity.

10 Create in me a pure heart, O God,
    and renew a steadfast spirit within me.
11 Do not cast me from your presence
    or take your Holy Spirit from me.
12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation
    and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.

13 Then I will teach transgressors your ways,
    so that sinners will turn back to you.
14 Deliver me from the guilt of bloodshed, O God,
    you who are God my Savior,
    and my tongue will sing of your righteousness.
15 Open my lips, Lord,
    and my mouth will declare your praise.
16 You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it;
    you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings.
17 My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit;
    a broken and contrite heart
    you, God, will not despise.

18 May it please you to prosper Zion,
    to build up the walls of Jerusalem.
19 Then you will delight in the sacrifices of the righteous,
    in burnt offerings offered whole;
    then bulls will be offered on your altar.

by

Prayer Requests 9-27-19

It’s Friday, so please remember to pray for Mumsee, Mike, and the Nestlings.

Anyone else?

Psalm  50

1 The Mighty One, God, the Lord,
    speaks and summons the earth
    from the rising of the sun to where it sets.
2 From Zion, perfect in beauty,
    God shines forth.
3 Our God comes
    and will not be silent;
   a fire devours before him,
    and around him a tempest rages.
4 He summons the heavens above,
    and the earth, that he may judge his people:
5 “Gather to me this consecrated people,
    who made a covenant with me by sacrifice.”
6 And the heavens proclaim his righteousness,
    for he is a God of justice.

7 “Listen, my people, and I will speak;
    I will testify against you, Israel:
    I am God, your God.
8 I bring no charges against you concerning your sacrifices
    or concerning your burnt offerings, which are ever before me.
9 I have no need of a bull from your stall
    or of goats from your pens,
10 for every animal of the forest is mine,
    and the cattle on a thousand hills.
11 I know every bird in the mountains,
    and the insects in the fields are mine.
12 If I were hungry I would not tell you,
    for the world is mine, and all that is in it.
13 Do I eat the flesh of bulls
    or drink the blood of goats?

14 “Sacrifice thank offerings to God,
    fulfill your vows to the Most High,
15 and call on me in the day of trouble;
    I will deliver you, and you will honor me.”

16 But to the wicked person, God says:

   “What right have you to recite my laws
    or take my covenant on your lips?
17 You hate my instruction
    and cast my words behind you.
18 When you see a thief, you join with him;
    you throw in your lot with adulterers.
19 You use your mouth for evil
    and harness your tongue to deceit.
20 You sit and testify against your brother
    and slander your own mother’s son.
21 When you did these things and I kept silent,
    you thought I was exactly like you.
   But I now arraign you
    and set my accusations before you.

22 “Consider this, you who forget God,
    or I will tear you to pieces, with no one to rescue you:
23 Those who sacrifice thank offerings honor me,
    and to the blameless I will show my salvation.”

by

Prayer Requests 9-26-19

It’s Thursday, so don’t forget to pray for Jo, her students, and the people of PNG.

Anyone else?

Psalm 49

1 Hear this, all you peoples;
    listen, all who live in this world,
2 both low and high,
    rich and poor alike:
3 My mouth will speak words of wisdom;
    the meditation of my heart will give you understanding.
4 I will turn my ear to a proverb;
    with the harp I will expound my riddle:

5 Why should I fear when evil days come,
    when wicked deceivers surround me—
6 those who trust in their wealth
    and boast of their great riches?
7 No one can redeem the life of another
    or give to God a ransom for them—
8 the ransom for a life is costly,
    no payment is ever enough—
9 so that they should live on forever
    and not see decay.
10 For all can see that the wise die,
    that the foolish and the senseless also perish,
    leaving their wealth to others.
11 Their tombs will remain their houses forever,
    their dwellings for endless generations,
    though they had named lands after themselves.

12 People, despite their wealth, do not endure;
    they are like the beasts that perish.

13 This is the fate of those who trust in themselves,
    and of their followers, who approve their sayings.
14 They are like sheep and are destined to die;
    death will be their shepherd
    (but the upright will prevail over them in the morning).
   Their forms will decay in the grave,
    far from their princely mansions.
15 But God will redeem me from the realm of the dead;
    he will surely take me to himself.
16 Do not be overawed when others grow rich,
    when the splendor of their houses increases;
17 for they will take nothing with them when they die,
    their splendor will not descend with them.
18 Though while they live they count themselves blessed—
    and people praise you when you prosper—
19 they will join those who have gone before them,
    who will never again see the light of life.

20 People who have wealth but lack understanding
    are like the beasts that perish.

by

Prayer Requests 9-23-19

Anyone have something to share?

Psalm 46

1 God is our refuge and strength,
    an ever-present help in trouble.
2 Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way
    and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea,
3 though its waters roar and foam
    and the mountains quake with their surging.

4 There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,
    the holy place where the Most High dwells.
5 God is within her, she will not fall;
    God will help her at break of day.
6 Nations are in uproar, kingdoms fall;
    he lifts his voice, the earth melts.

7 The Lord Almighty is with us;
    the God of Jacob is our fortress.

8 Come and see what the Lord has done,
    the desolations he has brought on the earth.
9 He makes wars cease
    to the ends of the earth.
   He breaks the bow and shatters the spear;
    he burns the shields with fire.
10 He says, “Be still, and know that I am God;
    I will be exalted among the nations,
    I will be exalted in the earth.”

11 The Lord Almighty is with us;
    the God of Jacob is our fortress.

by

Prayer Requests 9-21-19

Anyone have something to share?

Psalm 45

1 My heart is stirred by a noble theme
    as I recite my verses for the king;
    my tongue is the pen of a skillful writer.

2 You are the most excellent of men
    and your lips have been anointed with grace,
    since God has blessed you forever.

3 Gird your sword on your side, you mighty one;
    clothe yourself with splendor and majesty.
4 In your majesty ride forth victoriously
    in the cause of truth, humility and justice;
    let your right hand achieve awesome deeds.
5 Let your sharp arrows pierce the hearts of the king’s enemies;
    let the nations fall beneath your feet.
6 Your throne, O God, will last for ever and ever;
    a scepter of justice will be the scepter of your kingdom.
7 You love righteousness and hate wickedness;
    therefore God, your God, has set you above your companions
    by anointing you with the oil of joy.
8 All your robes are fragrant with myrrh and aloes and cassia;
    from palaces adorned with ivory
    the music of the strings makes you glad.
9 Daughters of kings are among your honored women;
    at your right hand is the royal bride in gold of Ophir.

10 Listen, daughter, and pay careful attention:
    Forget your people and your father’s house.
11 Let the king be enthralled by your beauty;
    honor him, for he is your lord.
12 The city of Tyre will come with a gift,
    people of wealth will seek your favor.
13 All glorious is the princess within her chamber;
    her gown is interwoven with gold.
14 In embroidered garments she is led to the king;
    her virgin companions follow her—
    those brought to be with her.
15 Led in with joy and gladness,
    they enter the palace of the king.

16 Your sons will take the place of your fathers;
    you will make them princes throughout the land.

17 I will perpetuate your memory through all generations;
    therefore the nations will praise you for ever and ever.

by

Prayer Requests 9-20-19

It’s Friday, so please remember to pray for Mumsee, Mike, and the Nestlings.

Anyone else?

Psalm  44

1 We have heard it with our ears, O God;
    our ancestors have told us
   what you did in their days,
    in days long ago.
2 With your hand you drove out the nations
    and planted our ancestors;
   you crushed the peoples
    and made our ancestors flourish.
3 It was not by their sword that they won the land,
    nor did their arm bring them victory;
   it was your right hand, your arm,
    and the light of your face, for you loved them.

4 You are my King and my God,
    who decrees victories for Jacob.
5 Through you we push back our enemies;
    through your name we trample our foes.
6 I put no trust in my bow,
    my sword does not bring me victory;
7 but you give us victory over our enemies,
    you put our adversaries to shame.
8 In God we make our boast all day long,
    and we will praise your name forever.

9 But now you have rejected and humbled us;
    you no longer go out with our armies.
10 You made us retreat before the enemy,
    and our adversaries have plundered us.
11 You gave us up to be devoured like sheep
    and have scattered us among the nations.
12 You sold your people for a pittance,
    gaining nothing from their sale.

13 You have made us a reproach to our neighbors,
    the scorn and derision of those around us.
14 You have made us a byword among the nations;
    the peoples shake their heads at us.
15 I live in disgrace all day long,
    and my face is covered with shame
16 at the taunts of those who reproach and revile me,
    because of the enemy, who is bent on revenge.

17 All this came upon us,
    though we had not forgotten you;
    we had not been false to your covenant.
18 Our hearts had not turned back;
    our feet had not strayed from your path.
19 But you crushed us and made us a haunt for jackals;
    you covered us over with deep darkness.

20 If we had forgotten the name of our God
    or spread out our hands to a foreign god,
21 would not God have discovered it,
    since he knows the secrets of the heart?
22 Yet for your sake we face death all day long;
    we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.

23 Awake, Lord! Why do you sleep?
    Rouse yourself! Do not reject us forever.
24 Why do you hide your face
    and forget our misery and oppression?

25 We are brought down to the dust;
    our bodies cling to the ground.
26 Rise up and help us;
    rescue us because of your unfailing love.