Not Forsaken Nor Abandoned: Psalm 37-Supplication through the Scriptures

Not Forsaken Nor Abandoned

Psalm 37

He is their strength in time of trouble. While trouble overthrows the wicked, it only drives the righteous to their strong Helper, who rejoices to uphold them.
Charles Spurgeon

What need are you facing today? Does it seem insurmountable? Are you tired of trying to figure it out? We have a loving Father and a humble Savior who says to us, “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28). He loves to “satisfy the weary ones and refresh everyone who languishes” (Jeremiah 31:25). If you find yourself feeling weary and discouraged today, draw near to Him who says, “Behold, I am the Lord, the God of all flesh; is anything too difficult for Me?” (Jeremiah 32:27) He is willing and able to carry our discouragement, our burdens, and our suffering, and invites us to cast those on Him and find our rest in Him. Rest from the heaviness. Rest from the mental battle going on inside. Rest from the worry. 
Pray through the end of Psalm 37. There are timely reminders for the weary heart. He “does not forsake His godly ones” (Psalm 37:28), “the Lord will not abandon him” (37:33). “Wait for the Lord and keep His way”(37:34). He is our stronghold in the time of trouble (37:39). Come take refuge in Him (37:40). 

He Will Not Forsake

37:27-31 Turn away from evil and do good; so shall you dwell forever. For the Lord loves justice; he will not forsake his saints. They are preserved forever, but the children of the wicked shall be cut off. The righteous shall inherit the land and dwell upon it forever. The mouth of the righteous utters wisdom, and his tongue speaks justice. The law of his God is in his heart; his steps do not slip. 
Let’s pray:
▫️In our time of need, we would turn away from the sins of worry, anxiety, and unbelief, and instead we would have confidence that He is working and He is making a way where there seems to be no way.
▫️Because He loves justice, He would work on our behalf in areas where righteous must be accomplished and wrongs be made right.
▫️The Lord would strengthen our hearts to rest in hope that He has not forsaken us and will not forsake us in our time of need. Let’s confess any doubt we have had in His goodness in our trying circumstance.
▫️The Lord would preserve and keep us during this fiery trial. Our faith would not waver because He is our helper, our shield, and our keeper.
▫️The words of our mouths would reflect the wisdom in our hearts, and we would be peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering and without hypocrisy (James 3:17).
▫️His Word would be in our hearts so that we would be walking in accordance to His law, and our steps would not slip.

The Lord Will Not Abandon

37:32-34 The wicked watches for the righteous and seeks to put him to death. The Lord will not abandon him to his power or let him be condemned when he is brought to trial. Wait for the Lord and keep his way, and he will exalt you to inherit the land; you will look on when the wicked are cut off. 
Let’s pray:
▫️Guard us from the devil who would love to kill our faith, weaken our resolve, and make us stumble and fall.
▫️We would hold firmly to the Lord knowing He will not abandon us to the enemy nor will He allow us to be condemned (Romans 8:1). Where are we struggling to trust the truth about God and what He promises for us?
▫️We would wait patiently in hope on the Lord during this difficulty while we look for Him to act.
▫️We would trust that the Lord will help us, keep us, protect us, and guard us (Psalm 121).
▫️While we wait, we would keep His way and not fall into discontentment, murmuring, bitterness, despair, discouragement, or unbelief.

The Lord Our Stronghold Helps and Delivers

37:35-40 I have seen a wicked, ruthless man, spreading himself like a green laurel tree. But he passed away, and behold, he was no more; though I sought him, he could not be found. Mark the blameless and behold the upright, for there is a future for the man of peace. But transgressors shall be altogether destroyed; the future of the wicked shall be cut off. The salvation of the righteous is from the Lord; he is their stronghold in the time of trouble. The Lord helps them and delivers them; he delivers them from the wicked and saves them, because they take refuge in him.
Let’s pray:
▫️In our distress, we would seek peace and pursue it, and as much as it depends on us we would be at peace with others (Romans 12:18).
▫️The Lord would be our stronghold in our time of trouble and we would not try and muster up our own strength or our own ability to push through our difficulty.
▫️The Lord would help and deliver us in His way and in His time, and we would trust that His way is best.
▫️We would not refuse to take refuge in Him because of stubbornness or confidence in our own ability, but we would come to Him, take refuge in Him, and find rest for our weary souls.

May the Lord do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, for His glory and our good. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Psalm 37:27-40 quoted from the ESV.
Photo credit to ynrozturk

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

A Mother’s Longing

Image
A Mother’s Longing “…in your faith you are standing firm.” 2 Corinthians 1:24 It is not surprising that 3 John 4 is so often quoted by Christian parents in their deep desire for their children, “I have no greater joy than this, to hear of my children walking in the truth” (NASB). This is the deep longing of my heart as a mother. I want my children to truly know Christ, to walk in His ways, to love His Word, and to be committed to His church. I desire to be able to say to them, “in your faith you are standing firm” (2 Corinthians. 1:24). Am I being a faithful steward of my role as a Christian mother? Are my actions reflecting this deep desire to see my dearly loved children walking in the truth?  As we head into this new year, it is wise to both look back and look forward. The new year offers us many possibilities to grow and change and also to continue to persevere in the things that God, by His grace, has enabled us to carry out faithfully. If one of my deepest longings is to see ...
Read more

A Piercing that Drives Us to Our Knees

Image
A Piercing that Drives Us to Our Knees: to the mothers of the brokenhearted and the wandering Where there is a praying mother there is always hope. J.C.Ryle From the time our children are a positive line on a pregnancy test and then placed in our arms for the first time, our hearts as their mother are intricately intertwined with theirs. The first cry brings tears and joy, such inexpressible joy. And then they grow, and we love to see them exploring, learning, and developing their personalities. But the moment they come home having faced rejection for the first time, or they struggle with a mental illness that leaves us feeling deeply inadequate, or we get an email from the school that they’ve been caught cheating, each taste of sorrow and sin that they taste, we experience as well. The words spoken to Mary could be the gentle warning each mother must heed, “and a sword will pierce even your own soul”(Luke 2:35).  I’m not sure our children will understand until they become parents ...
Read more

Don’t Give Up, Mom: when mothering makes you weary

Image
  Don’t Give Up: when mothering makes you weary Therefore, having this ministry by the mercy of God, we never give up… 2 Corinthians 4:1 ESV, NLT Mothering can have seasons where weariness and discouragement lie right at the surface. Perhaps it’s a physically exhausting time, maybe spiritually you’re struggling or a child is, maybe it’s just busier than normal and it’s hard to juggle everything without feeling stressed out, or maybe it’s hard to even find a reason why you’re struggling. It can be so many little things, or big things and little things, and you just want to give up, even if only for a little while. You wish you could run away and rest, clear your mind and breathe. How can we faithfully persevere through motherhood, each of its season, and each season’s hardships?  As I studied 2 Corinthians 4:1-6, I wanted to see how Paul could say, “we never give up.” Studying this book, I have come to appreciate the tenacity of Paul and his steadfastness through so many diffic...
Read more