Every once and a while someone asks me, “How should I
pray for _____” You can fill in the
blank: children, sick friends, dying
grandparents, etc. This psalm is an
outstanding answer to that question.
“May the LORD answer
you in the day of trouble!” So many
times the hardest part of anything is where to begin. This psalm begins, “May God answer your
prayers!” It implies that the person we
are praying for is, herself, praying. She
is relying on God and waiting for His answer.
If she does not believe, there is a request here to move her to faith
and prayer, that she would learn to call upon the LORD, trust in Him, and that
she would see His salvation.
“May the name of the God of Jacob protect you! May he send you help from the sanctuary and
give you support from Zion!” God reveals
Himself and gives Himself to us through His name. Particularly, God comes to us in Jesus, of
whom the Bible says, “there is no other name given under heaven … by which we
must be saved.” (Acts 4:12) Jesus’ name means, “The LORD saves,” and God’s
Word delivers what it says. Therefore
when we pray, may the name protect you,
we are praying for the salvation Jesus has won for us to be applied in the life
of the ones we pray for.
“May he remember all your offerings and regard with favor
your burnt sacrifices! May he grant you
your heart’s desire and fulfill all your plans.” These two verses go together because as we
talk about offerings and sacrifices the primary purpose we think of is for
atonement for sin, and as he talks of our heart’s desire he reminds us that all
of us are incomplete without a loving relationship with our heavenly
Father. Our sacrifice and offering was
provided for us by Jesus when He died to atone for our sins, and He is the one
who reconciles and restores us to God. Having
been redeemed our hearts are changed to desire what God desires, so we are
truly asking God to give us His heart’s desire in this prayer!
“May we shout for joy over your salvation, and in the
name of our God set up our banners! May
the LORD fulfill all your petitions.” This verse takes us back to the first. We desire to celebrate in God’s
loving-kindness as He hears and answers the prayers of our loved ones to grow
them in faith, hope, maturity, love, and every fruit of the Spirit.
These are such wonderful things for us to pray for our
children, families, congregations, and all the people for whom we pray. Yet, how can we know that God will hear our
prayer, let alone the prayer of the ones we pray for? The answer is in the rest of the psalm: “Now I know that the LORD saves his anointed;
he will answer him from his holy heaven with the saving might of his right
hand. Some trust in chariots and some in
horses, but we trust in the name of the LORD our God. They collapse and fall, but we rise and stand
upright. O LORD, save the king! May he answer us when we call.”
We know God answers us because of what He did for his “anointed
one,” that is, his “messiah” - Jesus.
When Jesus died for us, entrusting His spirit into the Father’s hands,
the Father received his spirit and accepted His sacrifice. How can we know? Because on the third day, God raised Jesus from
the dead, effectively returning His spirit to Him. Jesus stood in the place of all of humanity
to bear our sins, and as our representative He prayed and God heard and
answered Him. He will do the same for us
as we call out to Him on behalf of those He has placed in our lives to love and
witness to.
Father in Heaven, You
always answer my prayers. I don’t always
like or understand Your answers, but I pray for the faith to accept them, and
know that in all things You work for the good of those who love You. As I pray for those I love, I ask that You
would draw them near to You and save them.
Amen.
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