Soulfood

The Psalms of the Day for the 3rd day of each month are 3, 33, 63, 93, and 123.

Psalm 3 is a prayer asking for deliverance from enemies. The psalm begins with a cry of woe – how my enemies are increasing! – and moves to praise and taking comfort in YHWH. As we pray this prayer, we think of those who either feel like or actually are enemies in our lives, and ask God to deal with them on our behalf. We turn our gaze from them to God, reminding ourselves as we pray that YHWH is our shield. We release our desire to fix things in our own strength and ask the God who saves us to keep our enemies from talking about us and against us – to break their teeth – while we wait and trust in him.

Praying Psalm 33 sets us to praising YHWH joyfully. Sometimes our heart is not in such prayers – the cares of the world and its weary and dreary tasks leave us feeling lifeless and hopeless. But this psalm – written 3000 years ago – reminds us that as human life has always been filled with sorrow and trouble and heavy labors, yet YHWH is always faithful. We are reminded in praying through this psalm of YHWH’s character and his sovereignty over all things. We can pray for our leaders, confident that YHWH brings the counsel of those who oppose Him to nothing (v. 10). We pray for leaders in the church, that they would trust and hope only in the steadfast love of YHWH and not in the devices of men to accomplish God’s victory. This is not the way we tend to pray! Which is why we should practice it, so that our prayers – and desires – thereby become conformed to YHWH’s heart, revealed to us in Scripture. As we let this language shape our prayers we do find joy in the waiting, so that we are “glad in him, because we trust in his holy name!”

Psalm 63 is a prayer of one who knows she is needy, and that her needs can only be met in YHWH. We pray in this psalm for our unbelieving family members, neighbors, coworkers, and others – that they would feel their thirst and come to the living water. That they would understand that God’s hesed is better than life and earnestly seek it – and for ourselves, too, that we would turn away from doing evil and chasing after after things that do not satisfy, but be satisfied in God. And as we are, we remember him through the watches of the night, clinging to our helper – Jesus. 

Psalm 93 is a prayer of praise to remind us that YHWH is sovereign and we have nothing to fear! We can pray this psalm as we remember the many afflictions with which various of us are afflicted, praising God in the midst of them and encouraging each other to praise and thank him despite how we feel. We remember his promises which are “very trustworthy” and true.

Psalm 123 is worth memorizing to encourage ourselves and one another by praying it when we are discouraged and despairing. It reminds us that we are lowly in position and in need of a kind and gentle master to care for us with humility and grace. We give thanks for Jesus, our good shepherd, who does not treat us with contempt or scorn but shows us mercy, and mercy, and yet more mercy. Thanks be to God for his great mercy to us in Jesus!