praying effectively: Do Not Fret (Ps.37)

(Psalm 37:1-40)

 Do not fret because of evildoers, be not envious toward wrongdoers.
2 For they will wither quickly like the grass and fade like the green herb.
3 Trust in the Lord and do good; dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness.
4 Delight yourself in the Lord; and He will give you the desires of your heart.
5 Commit your way to the Lord, trust also in Him, and He will do it.
6 He will bring forth your righteousness as the light and your judgment as the noonday.

7 Rest in the Lord and wait patiently for Him; do not fret because of him who prospers in his way, because of the man who carries out wicked schemes.
8 Cease from anger and forsake wrath; do not fret; it leads only to evildoing.
9 For evildoers will be cut off, but those who wait for the Lord, they will inherit the land.
10 Yet a little while and the wicked man will be no more; and you will look carefully for his place and he will not be there.
11 But the humble will inherit the land and will delight themselves in abundant prosperity.

12 The wicked plots against the righteous and gnashes at him with his teeth.
13 The Lord laughs at him, for He sees his day is coming.
14 The wicked have drawn the sword and bent their bow to cast down the afflicted and the needy, to slay those who are upright in conduct.
15 Their sword will enter their own heart, and their bows will be broken.

16 Better is the little of the righteous than the abundance of many wicked.
17 For the arms of the wicked will be broken, but the Lord sustains the righteous.
18 The Lord knows the days of the blameless, and their inheritance will be forever.
19 They will not be ashamed in the time of evil, and in the days of famine they will have abundance.
20 But the wicked will perish; and the enemies of the Lord will be like the glory of the pastures, they vanish—like smoke they vanish away.
21 The wicked borrows and does not pay back, but the righteous is gracious and gives.
22 For those blessed by Him will inherit the land, but those cursed by Him will be cut off.

23 The steps of a man are established by the Lord, and He delights in his way.
24 When he falls, he will not be hurled headlong, because the Lord is the One who holds his hand.
25 I have been young and now I am old, yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken or his descendants begging bread.
26 All day long he is gracious and lends, and his descendants are a blessing.

27 Depart from evil and do good, so you will abide forever.
28 For the Lord loves justice and does not forsake His godly ones; they are preserved forever, but the descendants of the wicked will be cut off.
29 The righteous will inherit the land and dwell in it forever.
30 The mouth of the righteous utters wisdom, and his tongue speaks justice.
31 The law of his God is in his heart; his steps do not slip.
32 The wicked spies upon the righteous and seeks to kill him.
33 The Lord will not leave him in his hand or let him be condemned when he is judged.
34 Wait for the Lord and keep His way, and He will exalt you to inherit the land; when the wicked are cut off, you will see it.

35 I have seen a wicked, violent man spreading himself like a luxuriant tree in its native soil.
36 Then he passed away, and lo, he was no more; I sought for him, but he could not be found.
37 Mark the blameless man, and behold the upright; for the man of peace will have a posterity.
38 But transgressors will be altogether destroyed; the posterity of the wicked will be cut off.
39 But the salvation of the righteous is from the Lord; He is their strength in time of trouble.
40 The Lord helps them and delivers them; He delivers them from the wicked and saves them, because they take refuge in Him.

Reminder:  "praying effectively" involves knowing God's will.  When we pray in His will (in His name), He may choose to not answer those prayers in the time period that we would like, or HOW we would like - but He will answer those prayers!

It is God's will:
- that we do not fret over evildoers (37:1, 7-8)
- that we stop hating and being angry (37:8)
- that we are not envious of the false freedom that wrongdoers seem to have (37:1)
- that we appreciate the believer who lives righteously (37:37)
- that we trust in the Lord (37:3, 5)
- that we commit our way to the Lord (37:5)
- that we are obedient to God's will (37:34)
- that we delight ourselves in the Lord (37:4)
- that we do not try to run away or hide, but dwell in land and cultivate faithfulness (37:3)
- that we rest in the Lord and wait patiently for Him (37:7, 34)
- that we do good (37:3)

Today's prayer:

Dear Lord Jesus, thank You so much for being our refuge, even though there may be evil all around us.  Help build our faith in You so that we do not fear, hate or envy evildoers.  As we continue on living in Your will, may our good deeds define a different kind of success for the world to sit up and take notice... the "success" of living with contentment and true joy, peace and strength found only in You!  Amen.

praying effectively: Celebrate Other Believers (Ps.35)

(Psalm 35:9-28)

9 And my soul shall rejoice in the Lord; it shall exult in His salvation.
10 All my bones will say, “Lord, who is like You, who delivers the afflicted from him who is too strong for him, and the afflicted and the needy from him who robs him?”
11 Malicious witnesses rise up; they ask me of things that I do not know.
12 They repay me evil for good, to the bereavement of my soul.
13 But as for me, when they were sick, my clothing was sackcloth; I humbled my soul with fasting, and my prayer kept returning to my bosom.
14 I went about as though it were my friend or brother; I bowed down mourning, as one who sorrows for a mother.
15 But at my stumbling they rejoiced and gathered themselves together; the smiters whom I did not know gathered together against me, they slandered me without ceasing.
16 Like godless jesters at a feast, they gnashed at me with their teeth.

17 Lord, how long will You look on? Rescue my soul from their ravages, my only life from the lions.
18 I will give You thanks in the great congregation; I will praise You among a mighty throng.
19 Do not let those who are wrongfully my enemies rejoice over me; nor let those who hate me without cause wink maliciously.
20 For they do not speak peace, but they devise deceitful words against those who are quiet in the land.
21 They opened their mouth wide against me; they said, “Aha, aha, our eyes have seen it!”

22 You have seen it, O Lord, do not keep silent; O Lord, do not be far from me.
23 Stir up Yourself, and awake to my right and to my cause, my God and my Lord.
24 Judge me, O Lord my God, according to Your righteousness, and do not let them rejoice over me.
25 Do not let them say in their heart, “Aha, our desire!” Do not let them say, “We have swallowed him up!”
26 Let those be ashamed and humiliated altogether who rejoice at my distress; let those be clothed with shame and dishonor who magnify themselves over me.

27 Let them shout for joy and rejoice, who favor my vindication; and let them say continually, “The Lord be magnified, who delights in the prosperity of His servant.”
28 And my tongue shall declare Your righteousness and Your praise all day long.

Reminder:  "praying effectively" involves knowing God's will.  When we pray in His will (in His name), He may choose to not answer those prayers in the time period that we would like, or HOW we would like - but He will answer those prayers!

It is God's will:
- that believers encourage and support each other (35:27)
- that we shout for joy, rejoice, and magnify the Lord (35:27)

Today's prayer:

Dear Lord Jesus, forgive me for not always being encouraging and supportive to my loved ones and other believers.  Even in those times when I'm "being funny" or "trying to help".  There's a lot of room for improvement for me in that area.

Give me wisdom and insight and a whole lot of love.  And dare I say it - I believe humility is also necessary... otherwise - I - think that I'm being clever, or - I - know a whole bunch in order to solve an issue.  Meanwhile, the answer is to magnify YOU!!!  And to be continually "resting" at peace in Your joy.  Thank You for always being right here for us!  I know that when I focus on how big and awesome You are, the more peace and joy I find!  Amen.

praying effectively: Taste and See (Ps.34)

(Psalm 34:1-22)

I will bless the Lord at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth.
2 My soul will make its boast in the Lord; the humble will hear it and rejoice.
3 O magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt His name together.

4 I sought the Lord, and He answered me, and delivered me from all my fears.
5 They looked to Him and were radiant, and their faces will never be ashamed.
6 This poor man cried, and the Lord heard him and saved him out of all his troubles.
7 The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear Him, and rescues them.

8 O taste and see that the Lord is good; how blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him!
9 O fear the Lord, you His saints; for to those who fear Him there is no want.
10 The young lions do lack and suffer hunger; but they who seek the Lord shall not be in want of any good thing.
11 Come, you children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the Lord.
12 Who is the man who desires life and loves length of days that he may see good?
13 Keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking deceit.
14 Depart from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it.

15 The eyes of the Lord are toward the righteous and His ears are open to their cry.
16 The face of the Lord is against evildoers, to cut off the memory of them from the earth.
17 The righteous cry, and the Lord hears and delivers them out of all their troubles.
18 The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.

19 Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them all.
20 He keeps all his bones, not one of them is broken.
21 Evil shall slay the wicked, and those who hate the righteous will be condemned.
22 The Lord redeems the soul of His servants, and none of those who take refuge in Him will be condemned.

Reminder:  "praying effectively" involves knowing God's will.  When we pray in His will (in His name), He may choose to not answer those prayers in the time period that we would like, or HOW we would like - but He will answer those prayers!

It is God's will:
- that we magnify and exalt the Lord together (34:3)
- that we taste and see that the Lord is good (34:8)
- that we take refuge in the Lord (34:8)
- that we fear the Lord (34:9)
- that we heed the words which God has inspired (34:11)
- that we watch what we say (34:13)
- that we do good, not evil (34:14)
- that we seek and pursue peace (34:14)

Today's prayer:

Dear Lord Jesus, let what we do and say magnify and exalt Your name!  May the peace that You give our hearts desire to reach out and share and make peace with others.

When we meet together as believers, let there be excitement and joy, to celebrate what You have done for us, what You are doing for us, and what You will do for us in the future.  May we desire to gain more and more understanding and continually grow closer to You and Your word.  Thank You for being our righteous protector and most generous provider.  Amen.