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In Christ, Mark
The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
In Christ, Mark
The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
Hear us, Shepherd of Israel, You who lead Joseph like a flock. You who sit enthroned between the cherubim, shine forth before Ephraim, Benjamin and Manasseh. Awaken Your might; come and save us.
Restore us, O God; make Your face shine on us, that we may be saved.
How long, Lord God Almighty, will your anger smolder against the prayers of your people? You have fed them with the bread of tears; You have made them drink tears by the bowlful. You have made us an object of derision to our neighbors, and our enemies mock us.
Restore us, God Almighty; make Your face shine on us, that we may be saved.
You transplanted a vine from Egypt; You drove out the nations and planted it. You cleared the ground for it, and it took root and filled the land. The mountains were covered with its shade, the mighty cedars with its branches. Its branches reached as far as the Sea, its shoots as far as the River.
Why have You broken down its walls so that all who pass by pick its grapes? Boars from the forest ravage it, and insects from the fields feed on it. Return to us, God Almighty! Look down from heaven and see! Watch over this vine, the root Your right hand has planted, the son you have raised up for Yourself.
Your vine is cut down, it is burned with fire; at Your rebuke Your people perish. Let Your hand rest on the man at Your right hand, the son of man You have raised up for Yourself. Then we will not turn away from you; revive us, and we will call on Your name.
Restore us, Lord God Almighty; make Your face shine on us, that we may be saved.
Psalm 80
This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
The psalmist who penned the 80th Psalm, gives us a glimpse of some of the troubles Israel was enduring at the time, troubles that he believed God had brought. In deep despair over the current circumstances, we wrote:
Hear us, Shepherd of Israel, You who lead Joseph like a flock. You who sit enthroned between the cherubim, shine forth before Ephraim, Benjamin and Manasseh. Awaken Your might; come and save us.
Restore us, O God; make Your face shine on us, that we may be saved.
How long, Lord God Almighty, will your anger smolder against the prayers of your people? You have fed them with the bread of tears; You have made them drink tears by the bowlful. You have made us an object of derision to our neighbors, and our enemies mock us.
Restore us, God Almighty; make Your face shine on us, that we may be saved.
You transplanted a vine from Egypt; You drove out the nations and planted it. You cleared the ground for it, and it took root and filled the land. The mountains were covered with its shade, the mighty cedars with its branches. Its branches reached as far as the Sea, its shoots as far as the River.
Why have You broken down its walls so that all who pass by pick its grapes? Boars from the forest ravage it, and insects from the fields feed on it. Return to us, God Almighty! Look down from heaven and see! Watch over this vine, the root Your right hand has planted, the son you have raised up for Yourself.
Your vine is cut down, it is burned with fire; at Your rebuke Your people perish. Let Your hand rest on the man at Your right hand, the son of man You have raised up for Yourself. Then we will not turn away from you; revive us, and we will call on Your name.
Restore us, Lord God Almighty; make Your face shine on us, that we may be saved.
The passage is full of questions toward God. They included:
How long, Lord God Almighty, will your anger smolder against the prayers of your people?
Why have You broken down its walls so that all who pass by pick its grapes?
How long and why. Ask yourself how many times you have spoken those same words to the Lord? You may ask any or all of the following:
How long must I wait Lord for You? How long before I am healed? How long before I will have a job? How long before I will have a child? How long do I have to wait until I find someone to love and share my life with forever? How long do I have to live this life Lord?
Why am I suffering? Why don’t I ever seem to be able to get ahead? Why doesn’t my husband/wife love me? Why can’t I stop sinning? Why won’t You just take me to be with You right now Lord? Why is the world such an evil place? Why don’t You answer my prayers Lord? Why is this happening to me Lord?
Clearly, we have our own share of questions.
The passage also contained words of petition toward God. They were:
Hear us. Awaken Your might. Return to us. Look down and see. Watch over. Revive us.
and
three key petitions, petitions we too should use…three main appeals the psalmist always asked for:
Restore us, Lord God Almighty; make Your face shine on us, that we may be saved.
How can we use these three things? By using them in our prayers as a request before God for our every need. Go back to our questions and the petitions of the psalmist, petitions we too would use in tandem with our questions. Using the three appeals, it would look something like this:
Why am I suffering? How long before I am healed? Hear my prayer and bring mend me I pray.
Restore me, Lord God Almighty; make Your face shine on me, that I might be saved.
Why don’t I ever seem to be able to get ahead? How long before I will have a job? Look down and see Lord. Provide me employment and grant me the means by which to afford to live.
Restore me, Lord God Almighty; make Your face shine on me, that I might be saved.
How long do I have to wait until I find someone to love and share my life with forever? Will I never have the chance to marry? Watch over me Lord and bring me a companion, I pray.
Restore me, Lord God Almighty; make Your face shine on me, that I might be saved.
This passage from the Psalms offers us words to pray, three special appeals to use. We just need to apply them, knowing that God is always listening to what we ask for and will provide in accordance with His will and in His perfect time, bringing restoration, hope, and deliverance.
Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
Send any prayer requests to ourchristianwalk@aol.com
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