How to Pray and Praise

"Psalm 19

 1.The Heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.

2.Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they reveal knowledge.

3.They have no speech, they use no words; no sound is heard from them.

4.Yet their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world. In the heavens God has pitched a tent for the sun.

5.It is like a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, like a champion rejoicing to run his course.

6.It rises at one end of the heavens and makes its circuit to the other; nothing is deprived of its warmth.

7.The law of the Lord is perfect, refreshing the soul. The statutes of the Lord are trustworthy, making wise the simple.

8.The precepts of the Lord are right, giving joy to the heart. The commands of the Lord are radiant, giving light to the eyes.

9.The fear of the Lord is pure, enduring forever. The decrees of the Lord are firm, and all of them are righteous.

10.They are more precious than gold, than much pure gold; they are sweeter than honey, than honey from the honeycomb.

11.By them your servant is warned; in keeping them there is great reward.

12.But who can discern their own errors? Forgive my hidden faults.

13.Keep your servant also from willful sins; may they not rule over me. Then I will be blameless, innocent of great transgression.

14.May these words of my mouth and this meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sights, Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer.

Favorite Bible passages are a thing many of us have, right? Well, I can say Psalm 19 is definitely a favorite of mine. I was taught several years back this Psalm (like many) is a prayer that can show an example for praying.

First notice it begins with praise. Next, you have confession, and finally, it ends with requests. Let’s begin with the praise and take a close look at how David begins this praise. I have always loved to look at the sky, especially the night sky. I know the names of a few constellations and how their positions change with the seasons as the earth orbits. Once, my husband and I learned of a place in the mountains near Mount Shasta where people gathered with telescopes late at night to view the night sky. We were able to see planets up close and contemplate the wonder of God as we were told how the universe continues to grow and expand!! I had heard of that same idea years earlier in the Air and Space Museum in Washington DC. A video we watched spoke of space as having no end! Wow! ‘Our God is great!’ was my thought at the time, and He is eternal so it made sense that scientists could not find an end to space. In Psalm 19:1-6, David brings these same thoughts to our minds! The heavens declare God’s glory, day after day and night after night! God controls it all! This amazing God is the one who has come to earth to save a fallen and needy human race! Praise Him as you think of His greatness and His amazing love!

 The next section, Psalm 19:7-10, is more praise for God’s law and His Word. His law, statutes, precepts, commands, and ordinances are perfect, trustworthy, and right. They give joy and light, they are radiant, pure, and righteous. Do you think about praising God this much? I confess I don’t always do that. Verse 10 brings in a thought about gold and honey. I learned a story once about a Rabbi teaching his students how to view God and His Word. He put honey in a bowl and told his students to dip their little fingers in the honey and taste it. Then he told them, “Remember God’s Word is sweeter than honey and the power in his little finger is greater than anything in the entire universe!” I never forgot that word picture! We all love gold and its value, but do we think of our life with God and His Word as more precious than gold and all the riches the world can give?

The next part, verses 11-13, is confession and another section I relate to! It tells us when we are in the Word of God’s truth, we are warned by it and when we follow that truth there is great reward.

How are we warned by the words which say, “Who can discern their own errors?” The psalmist prays the way I appreciate once again, “Forgive my hidden faults.” Don’t we all have hidden faults?? Verse 13 reminds us of our needs, “Keep your servant also from willful sins, may they not rule over me.” That verse ends with saying, “I will be blameless, innocent of great transgression.”

Praise God that Jesus comes into this picture! He is the one who makes us truly blameless and innocent. I have to focus on the fact that I will never be good enough on my own! I need to continue to go to Jesus for my cleansing because He always wants me to come to Him. He will never turn anyone away when we come to him in repentance and humbleness.

The request is short which reminds me it doesn’t take a lot of words to ask for help. Verse 14, “May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer.”

My prayer for all of us is to reflect on who Jesus is by our words and actions. May we all lean on Jesus as we strive to live for Him! Remembering too, that our actions always speak the loudest about the importance of God in our lives. Just the other day a friend told me her friend said he did not believe in God because of someone he considered a hypocrite! This is very sad, that anyone bases their belief on another’s example of following God, but it happens more than we know. This alone should inspire us to pray the above prayer often! Do I hear an Amen?!?