A Prayer for Guidance
To the Chief Musician. With flutes. A Psalm of David.
“Give ear to my words, O Lord, Consider my meditation. Give heed to the voice of my cry, my King and my God, for to You I will pray. My voice You shall hear in the morning, O Lord; in the morning I will direct it to You, and I will look up.
For You are not a God who takes pleasure in wickedness, nor shall evil dwell with You. The boastful shall not stand in Your sight; You hate all workers of iniquity. You shall destroy those who speak falsehood; the Lord abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful man.
But as for me, I will come into Your house in the multitude of Your mercy; in fear of You I will worship toward Your holy temple. Lead me, O Lord, in Your righteousness because of my enemies; make Your way straight before my face.
For there is no faithfulness in their mouth; their inward part is destruction; their throat is an open tomb; they flatter with their tongue. Pronounce them guilty, O God! Let them fall by their own counsels; cast them out in the multitude of their transgressions, for they have rebelled against You.
But let all those rejoice who put their trust in You; let them ever shout for joy, because You defend them; let those also who love Your name be joyful in You. For You, O Lord, will bless the righteous; with favor You will surround him as with a shield.”
Well, David’s enemies are at it again, so once more David is begging God for help and protection. Despite all of David’s successes in battle and his appealing charismatic personality, there are always those who are working behind the scenes, attempting to undermine David. After all, Saul was the first king of Israel and David is only the second one. Why can’t a crafty individual manipulate the people and seize power? And then there are threats from surrounding nations who would love to annex Israel and its mineral wealth and trade routes.
Facing such daunting situations, what is David’s response?
- “My voice You shall hear in the morning, O Lord; in the morning I will direct it to You, and I will look up.” David doesn’t waste any time. First thing in the morning, David is praying and asking God for guidance and protection.
- “For You are not a God who takes pleasure in wickedness, nor shall evil dwell with You.” Does God need to be reminded of His character? Certainly not! But David is reminding himself of God’s righteousness that will not allow God to tolerate evil in any form.
- “The boastful shall not stand in Your sight; You hate all workers of iniquity. You shall destroy those who speak falsehood; the Lord abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful man.” Here David is describing his enemies, especially those who have been working to undermine him by any means possible.
- “But as for me, I will come into Your house in the multitude of Your mercy; in fear of You I will worship toward Your holy temple.” David is not coming to God trusting in his own righteousness, but in God’s mercy. David respects God and stands in awe of Him; this heart attitude allows David to worship God with a clean heart.
- “Lead me, O Lord, in Your righteousness because of my enemies; make Your way straight before my face.” David knows that without God’s guidance, he will fail and be defeated. Is God willing to guide David? Certainly! But by this request, David is humbling himself to receive God’s guidance. We cannot receive anything from God as long as we feel sufficient in ourselves.
- “For there is no faithfulness in their mouth; their inward part is destruction; their throat is an open tomb; they flatter with their tongue. Pronounce them guilty, O God! Let them fall by their own counsels; cast them out in the multitude of their transgressions, for they have rebelled against You.” David realizes that those opposing him carry with them the seeds of their own destruction. God has anointed David to be king over Israel, so all those opposing his kingship are wrong. Failing to acknowledge the Will of God, these people are rebelling against God and will fail.
- “But let all those rejoice who put their trust in You; let them ever shout for joy, because You defend them; let those also who love Your name be joyful in You. For You, O Lord, will bless the righteous; with favor You will surround him as with a shield.” These verses are some of the most encouraging affirmations available. When we trust God, we can rejoice because we are trusting the Lord of the Universe. When God gives His favor to someone, nobody can oppose it!
APPLICATION: This is another one of my favorite psalms for obvious reasons. During the years when I headed a mission hospital, critics were everywhere. Our facility cares for poor subsistence farmers in a remote part of northeastern Ghana. While the heavenly rewards are out of this world, earthly rewards are by no means abundant.
It is tempting for our staff to compare their situation with that of workers in wealthier parts of Ghana. In addition, the part of the district that includes the district capital and our hospital can become a giant island during the rainy season. As I write these words, we are having to bring in supplies by hauling them to a river, bringing them across in canoes, and then hauling them on into our hospital.
When David wrote this psalm, he knew that God had anointed him as king over Israel and that he was called to that work. We too know that God has called us to remain and to work under these difficult conditions.
Many of us find ourselves stuck in difficult situations from which there is no easy exit. No matter where we are, we can pray along with David, “But let all those rejoice who put their trust in You; let them ever shout for joy, because You defend them; let those also who love Your name be joyful in You. For You, O Lord, will bless the righteous; with favor You will surround him as with a shield.”
God may not deliver you out of your situation, but God can defend you and give you joy and favor in your situation. If you know those who are going through tough times, you can also pray these verses over them for God’s protection and favor. Who knows what miracles God will do in answer to your prayers?
PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, we need Your protection, Your grace, and Your favor. Help us to confess our sins to You so that You can continue to bless us. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.
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