The Everyday Prayer

Re:Verse passage – Psalm 62:1-12 (day seven)

My soul waits in silence for God only;
From Him is my salvation. Psalm 62:1

We live in a loud world. It seems as if there is almost always some sort of noise happening in the background. People walk around with headphones on like it’s an accessory. We have TVs in every room of the house. Not to mention smart speakers that will play anything we tell them to. Our cars have turned into giant cell phones used to communicate on our commute. All of this means that we rarely find ourself in silence, but isn’t that what  your soul craves? We need silence.

That is obviously very difficult, because even when we get noises around us to be quieted, our mind struggles to be silent. We fill the void with our thoughts, our supplications, our plans that we are bringing before the Lord. Yet, this waiting that God asks from us is a state of complete trust. It is surrendered silence. A place where we are not only quieting the background noise, but even quieting our own mind so that we can wait and listen for the Lord in silence. It is in that silence that He begins to speak to us, to encourage us, to guide us, and even to fight for us.

The Lord will fight for you while you keep silent. Exodus 14:14

When was the last time you sat with the Lord in surrendered silence?

Re:Verse passage – Psalm 62:1-12 (day five)

“From Him is my salvation. He only is my rock and my salvation, My stronghold; I shall not be greatly shaken.”

How many sermons a week do you listen to? Who preaches those sermons?  Is it your local church pastor (once a week)?  Is it podcasts? Other sermons you access online?  I’m not suggesting your spiritual maturity is directly connected to how many sermons a week you hear. Instead, I want to suggest that perhaps the most influential preacher in your life could/should be… YOU!! Sometimes our tendency is to only listen to ourselves. When we listen, we hear struggle, pain, doubt, anxiety, etc. Nothing wrong with that (we ask the Spirit to search us and show us).  But don’t stop there. Once we listen (to ourselves and to the Spirit), we then should speak/preach to ourselves- asking the Spirit to guide us and teach us. That’s what David is doing in some of Palm 62, and he is preaching a terrific sermon – exactly what he needed to hear/learn/remember. The sermons we preach to ourselves can be life-giving and transformational. So maybe a helpful rhythm would be to not only listen/hear BUT ALSO speak/preach (all with the help and guidance of the Spirit).

“What is it that is capturing your idle thoughts? What fear or frustration is filling your spare moments? Will you just listen to yourself, or will you start talking? No, preaching—not letting your concerns shape you, but forming your concerns by the power of the gospel.”- David Mathis

Re:Verse passage – Psalm 62:1-12 (day four)

Trust in Him at all times, O people; Pour out your heart before Him; God is a refuge for us. Selah.

How often do you pour out your heart before God? Do you tend to maintain a sense of formality and “politeness” in your prayers? While God is holy and we should pray knowing we speak to a holy God, the Psalms teach us that emotion is still welcome in his holy presence. We can trust him at all times, knowing that he is the only one who knows the depths of our hearts and is the only one who can handle the things we try to carry. We can pour out our heart before him – even the ugly things we’re ashamed of, even our doubts. When we get those things in the light, they lose their ability to fester within us. When we pour out our heart before him, we’re reminded that God is truly our only refuge, and the best one we could ask for. He’s a refuge even from the war in our own mind.

Re:Verse passage – Psalm 62:1-12 (day three)

¹ I am at rest in God alone; my salvation comes from Him.

What do you do when trouble comes your way?

What defines trouble for you? Is it big things that shake your spirit such as a cancer diagnosis or an international crisis? Is trouble for you small things like being overly critical of something or someone because you didn’t get enough sleep, or a disappointment in your day? No matter how we define trouble, trouble will come. The temptation to react and handle things on our own will be there constantly and consistently throughout each day. There is always an urge to handle troubles on our own, rather than letting God handle them.

Often, it is easier to go to God with our bigger troubles and let Him take care of those. But that is not how God wants us to operate. The Bible is full of examples and exhortations to let God have all our cares, worries, and troubles. But we struggle with this. We struggle with letting Him have control over the big and the small troubles. Here in Psalm 62, the Psalmist reminds us to find rest in the Lord. If God is strong enough and big enough to handle our biggest troubles, isn’t He more than strong enough and big enough to handle our small troubles, also?

So, when trouble comes your way today, what will you do? Will you trust God and give it to Him, or will you try to handle (name your small or big trouble here) when it arises? I pray you find rest in Him today with the big and the small things.

Re:Verse passage – Psalm 62:1-12 (day two)

 He only is my rock and my salvation, My stronghold; I shall not be greatly shaken. V. 2

This psalm is filled with images of God as a strong fortress and tower. If we put our faith and trust in the Lord, we can rest securely in the knowledge that we are under his care and protection. These pictures are a great comfort and remind us of that which is immovable. There is a distinct contrast given at the end of verse three. When our trust and faith is established in anything other than the Lord, it is…

Like a leaning wall, like a tottering fence? V. 3b

People will try to convince you that people, institutions, ideologies are solid and trustworthy; but in the end they will result in an unstable grasp of reality. God alone provides the stability and strength that we need. May this be a reminder to all of us that no matter how shiny and new a way of thinking may be, if it is not rooted in God, it is a tottering fence.

 

Re:Verse passage – Psalm 37:1-40 (day six)

Do not fret; it leads only to evildoing. vs 8b

Three times in the first eight verses we see the psalmist uses the phrase, “Do not fret.” Anytime repetition is found in scripture, it is an indicator of importance, so what was David trying to highlight? We often attribute fretting to anxiety and worry. However, the word used here for fret is more often translated as anger or burning (Strong’s H2734).

David is telling us not to become angry by the success of evildoers. It is frustrating when it appears like God allows immoral people to avoid punishment. It is frustrating when it seems like bad things happen to good people and good things happen to bad people. It is frustrating when we do everything right, but others who don’t live for God get the reward. This is the feeling David is trying to invoke. Have you felt this before? If we are honest, we all have, and maybe even pretty recently.

David encourages us not to fret or get worked up by this because God is in control. When we take matters into our own hands, it leads to us becoming the evil we are trying to expose. We cause more harm than good when we get flustered by other’s success. Trust God’s plan and God’s timing. It will be better than anything this world can offer!

Bonus thought: Why does God allow the wicked to prosper? I would say he doesn’t. I’d argue the success of the wicked keeps them in a place where they believe they don’t need God. That’s what the enemy wants. Victory in Jesus is better than any victory the world can offer.

Re:Verse passage – Psalm 37:1-40 (day six)

“Be still in the presence of the Lord, and wait patiently for him to act.” Psalm 37:7

Stillness is not inactivity. Waiting is not absence.

Psalm 37 calls us to a kind of life that resists anxiety and anger (vv. 7–8), but it does not invite us into passivity. To be still before God is to locate yourself, intentionally, in His presence. It is to quiet the restless impulse to control outcomes and instead trust the One who sees the end from the beginning.

I find this especially relevant, in this very moment, in a season of writing for the completion of my Doctor of Ministry. Waiting for clarity, completion, or a breakthrough is rarely ideal. It feels slow, uncertain, even frustrating. But it can be deeply intentional. Waiting becomes a space where I write, trust, hope, and anticipate—before God.

We must be careful not to spiritualize waiting into something abstract or detached from real life. Biblical waiting is embodied. It shows up in disciplined faithfulness, in resisting worry, in refusing anger, in continuing the work set before us.

To wait for the Lord is not to do nothing.

It is to live, act, and endure, anchored in His presence—until He moves.

Re:Verse passage – Psalm 37:1-40 (day five)

It may be one of the most incredible promises in the Bible- God will give you the desires of your heart. No denying it is in the scriptures. How can this be true?  What is God really promising?

I think we need to ask another question or two in order to answer these questions. How do you see God? Or in other words, What is your view of God?  Is God a genie in heaven granting you wishes?  Whatever we want, he gives and does?  Is God a cosmic grandfather who is easily persuaded or caves into all our requests- wants us to be happy and is able and willing to spoil us above and beyond anything else. These may seem silly or extreme, but I have visited with lots of people (some who claim to be believers) who have this view and mindset.

The key to understanding the promise, is to consider its context. Two words are key. Delight and Heart. While affection is certainly a part of delight, the scriptures indicate that determination and discipline are also facets of delighting in the Lord. Determination and discipline to Learn about Him, Love Him, Know Him deeper. The scriptures also describe the heart as the place where priorities, values, decisions, desires, affections, and convictions are formed and ultimately shape and influence our thinking, feeling, and character (to name a few). So yes, when we delight in God and our hearts are renewed and reshaped by the Spirit- our desires become His desires. We see Him as a gracious, loving, sovereign God whose values and priorities become ours. And what we then begin to desire and ask for (shifts and transforms), becoming what He wants and desires for us. And God is promising to give us those things.