Prayer that the Lord Will Restore Favor to the Land
To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of the sons of Korah.
“Lord, You have been favorable to Your land; You have brought back the captivity of Jacob. You have forgiven the iniquity of Your people; You have covered all their sin. Selah
You have taken away all Your wrath; You have turned from the fierceness of Your anger. Restore us, O God of our salvation, and cause Your anger toward us to cease. Will You be angry with us forever? Will You prolong Your anger to all generations? Will You not revive us again, that Your people may rejoice in You? Show us Your mercy, Lord, and grant us Your salvation.
I will hear what God the Lord will speak, for He will speak peace to His people and to His saints; but let them not turn back to folly. Surely His salvation is near to those who fear Him, that glory may dwell in our land.
Mercy and truth have met together; righteousness and peace have kissed. Truth shall spring out of the earth, and righteousness shall look down from heaven. Yes, the Lord will give what is good; and our land will yield its increase. Righteousness will go before Him, and shall make His footsteps our pathway.”
“Lord, You have been favorable to Your land; You have brought back the captivity of Jacob. You have forgiven the iniquity of Your people; You have covered all their sin. Selah” The psalmist begins by recounting God’s faithfulness in freeing the Israelites from slavery and bringing them into the Promised Land.
“You have taken away all Your wrath; You have turned from the fierceness of Your anger. Restore us, O God of our salvation, and cause Your anger toward us to cease. Will You be angry with us forever? Will You prolong Your anger to all generations? Will You not revive us again, that Your people may rejoice in You? Show us Your mercy, Lord, and grant us Your salvation.” The Israelites have repeatedly rejected God, only to repent when they have reaped the results of their unfaithfulness. And each time the Israelites have repented, God has forgiven them. But once more, the Israelites are reverting to idolatry, while righteous believers watch in horror. The psalmist is begging God for revival, for he realizes that only divine intervention can deliver his people.
“I will hear what God the Lord will speak, for He will speak peace to His people and to His saints; but let them not turn back to folly. Surely His salvation is near to those who fear Him, that glory may dwell in our land.” God is always speaking to His people, but God’s people are not always listening! And God’s people are VERY easily distracted by the first attractive cult that comes along, turning back to folly in an instant. God’s salvation IS very near; however, God doesn’t force salvation on anybody. The entire universe tilts on the axis of free will: we are free to accept God’s will for our lives or to reject it.
“Mercy and truth have met together; righteousness and peace have kissed. Truth shall spring out of the earth, and righteousness shall look down from heaven. Yes, the Lord will give what is good; and our land will yield its increase. Righteousness will go before Him, and shall make his footsteps our pathway.” If God’s people will only serve Him, God will send His mercy and truth, righteousness and peace. When truth springs out of the earth, the land will yield abundantly. If we will serve God faithfully, we will find ourselves walking in God’s footsteps. But we can refuse God and suffer the consequences, something many people are doing.
APPLICATION: God is not a vending machine, nor will He be manipulated. God knows our hearts better than we do, and He knows whether or not we are sincere. Everything this short psalm describes is absolutely true. When we choose to follow God’s Will and serve Him only, God will heal our land and bless it. But when we turn away from God, we bring curses on ourselves as well as on our land. Fertility deteriorates and the spiritual atmosphere becomes oppressive.
I was part of a short-term mission group visiting Haiti in 1986. As we were flying into Port au Prince, we could feel the spiritual atmosphere becoming heavier and heavier. Originally, Haiti was a French colony with one of the most oppressive slavery systems in the Western Hemisphere. When the slaves rose up in 1797, hacking their masters to pieces with machetes, they established a society based on voodoo, or juju, to use the West African term. Despite a number of Christian missions and much sacrificial service, Satan’s hold on that country has never been broken. The country of Haiti only occupies half of the island of Hispaniola; the other half is occupied by the Dominican Republic. Crossing the border from Haiti to the Dominican Republic is like going from night to day. While the Dominican Republic has problems, they pale in comparison with those of Haiti. The Dominican Republic is predominantly Christian, with over 90% of the population practicing Catholicism.
There is no such thing as spiritual neutrality anywhere in the world. When we accept God and His commandments and follow Him, He will bless us. But the reverse also is true. The choice is ours. Choose wisely.
PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and caring for us. Thank You, that You will help us and bless our lands if we will only follow You. Help us to follow hard after You all the days of our lives. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.
Burunche's Blog 
Leave a comment