Soulfood

The Psalms of the Day for the thirteenth day of each month are 13, 43, 73, 103, and 133.

Psalm 13 is a “How long, oh YHWH?” lament asking God to vindicate us in the face of enemies and to show Himself to us in the midst of our suffering. It is the prayer of a desperate soul who turns from despair to the God Who deals bountifully with us, even when we are blind to His work in our lives. Whether we pray this for ourselves or for someone we know, the words of this psalm orient our cries of anger, helplessness, hatred, grief, and/or despair towards the God Who hears and acts on our behalf.

 

Likewise, Psalm 43 is a plea for God to send out His light and truth and bring us to His holy hill, where we will praise Him! Regardless of our circumstances or how we feel about them, this psalm helps us to hope in God Who is our salvation. As we pray this psalm we remember what God has done for us in Christ Jesus – namely, that He has brought us to His holy hill where we can worship Him in spirit and in truth!

 

Psalm 73 is a psalm of remembrance and a reminder to see this world and everything in it through the eyes of faith. Praying this psalm gives us confidence that in spite of what we see around us, God is in His holy temple sovereignly guiding all circumstances to conform to His will. We see evil all around us and wonder that nothing is done about it – but we are wrong to despair, and Psalm 73 guards our hearts against giving up in the face of evil. We pray this psalm against our enemies, and against the sin of despair in our hearts which could lead us to give up hope. The end of evil is foreordained and it will not prevail against Jesus! And God’s word will go out into all the world – we also pray that we will see this as we partner with one another and missionaries to tell of God’s sovereignty to all the nations.

 

Psalm 103 is a psalm of praise to our eternal, omnipotent, omniscient God Who is also compassionate, gracious, kind, and loves us with an everlasting love. We pray this psalm to renew and refresh our love for our amazing Creator!

 

Psalm 133 is a prayer of thankfulness for the union we have with one another as those who have been united to Christ. It is good to pray this prayer with and for one another, and take time to give thanks to God for fellow believers who encourage, comfort, and spur us on to love and good deeds. Remember one another with thanksgiving this week, praying this psalm joyfully and gratefully because you are not alone. Thanks be to God!