Singing All Of My Praises To You

O my Strength, to you I sing praises,
    for you, O God, are my refuge,
    the God who shows me unfailing love.

—Psalm 59:17 (NLT)

O God my Strength,

Because You are my refuge and strength—the One who shows me unfailing love—I will sing all of my praises to You.

For Your strength—that power that You display for all to see and that power by which I am equipped and sustained in Christ—I will forever praise You.

For Your unfailing love—the loving mercy that You pour over me so that I am not overwhelmed and undone by the power of Your strength—I will forever praise You.

For being my refuge—that safe haven where my confident awareness of Your Presence shelters me and defends me against the evil of this world—I will forever praise You.

So, let me sing praises to You, forever—that all may hear my joyous song and marvel at goodness of the One who is my Strength.

Because You are my refuge and strength—the One who shows me unfailing love—I will sing all of my praises to You.

In the name of Jesus, Amen.

Nothing Unnoticed, Unrecorded, Or Unremembered

You keep track of all my sorrows.
    You have collected all my tears in your bottle.
    You have recorded each one in your book.

—Psalm 56:8 (NLT)

Compassionate LORD God,

Down all the paths of sorrow, where my wanderings sometimes lead, remind me that you see each tear and know my every need.

When I find myself in a place of great sorrow—when I start to waver between faith and fear—comfort me with the assurance that You see me, You completely understand what I am feeling, and You are right there with me to carry me through my sadness and bring me back to that place of joy.

You know the end of every problem and trouble that I face before it even comes, but still You feel the hurt of every pain that I suffer along the way. Nothing that happens to me goes unnoticed, unrecorded or unremembered by You—for You are lovingly compassionate and just—my God and my Defender.

Quiet my heart and soothe my restless emotions, so I can live in the peaceful reassurance that You intimately know and care about every detail of my life and are actively working for good through everything that happens—as You draw me closer to You.

Down all the paths of sorrow, where my wanderings sometimes lead, remind me that you see each tear and know my every need.

In the name of Jesus, Amen.

Waiting For You To Answer

But I am deaf to all their threats.
    I am silent before them as one who cannot speak.

I choose to hear nothing,
    and I make no reply.

For I am waiting for you, O LORD.
    You must answer for me, O Lord my God.

—Psalm 38:13-15 (NLT)

O Lord my God,

When I feel threatened by others, when they offend me, or I am falsely accused, help me not to be provoked into sin, but help me keep control of my mind, will and emotions—so that I might please You, as I look to You in faith to answer for me.

Make me as if I were deaf to all the threats of others, as You remind me who I am in Christ—as You remind me that You have called me Your dearly loved child and that You have carefully and uniquely crafted who I am, according to Your perfect plans and purposes for me, that I might bring You glory.

By Your mercy and grace, let my mouth remain closed and my heart remain at peace—as if I cannot speak at all—unless Your words fill my mouth with truth and grace…and love requires that they be spoken.

Help me to choose not to hear their unjustified attacks against me, knowing that their accusations are not about me, but come from the brokenness of their own hearts—that they are born out of their own hurts and not out of their hatred for me.

Help me to make no reply on my own, but wait for You, trusting You to answer and set all things right, according to Your perfect timing and purpose—as I remain surrendered and submitted to Your will for my life.

When I feel threatened by others, when they offend me, or I am falsely accused, help me not to be provoked into sin, but help me keep control of my mind, will and emotions—so that I might please You, as I look to You in faith to answer for me.

In the name of Jesus, Amen.