40 Days of Prayer, Day 20
Today is the half way point through the 40 days of prayer. I hope and pray for God’s blessings on you today.
Day 20, Friday, September 9
Psalm 19:7-14 “The law of the LORD is perfect, restoring the soul; the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple…Moreover, by them Your servant is warned; In keeping them there is great reward. Who can discern his errors? Acquit me of hidden faults. Also keep back Your servant from presumptuous sins; Let them not rule over me; Then I will be blameless, and I shall be acquitted of great transgression. Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O LORD, my rock and my Redeemer.”
The Contrite-Hearted Prayer Life
The final words of this psalm are the prayers of a contrite heart. “Forgive me…keep me from sin…let my words and my thoughts be acceptable in Your sight.” When we consider the normal content of our prayers, how do they measure up with these requests? Do we often ask God to forgive us? Do we often ask God to keep is from sin and to keep sin from ruling over us? Do we ask God to check our words all day long at home or work? Do we often ask God to evaluate our thoughts? This is not a one-time prayer request. This must be continually on our hearts and minds. All day long we must plead with God for His help. With each conversation, we should ask Him to protect our words. With each idle moment, we must seek Him out so that our thoughts reflect His holy character. As Paul told the Thessalonian church we should, “pray without ceasing.”
The following text provides a model prayer crafted around the themes of the last few verses of Psalm 19. It is from antiquity so the language can be a bit challenging. It is also a little longer than our usual daily reflections. However, I found this prayer to be profound and heart-felt, while also retaining theological richness. I hope and prayer it is helpful to you today as we ask God to work in our lives.
From Arthur Lake (Bishop), in "Divine Meditations," 1629 (With some modernization by me for readability)
Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord, my strength and my Redeemer. Fast and pray; Lord, I do fast, and I would pray; for to what end do I withhold sustenance from my body if it is not to cheer up my soul? My hungry and my thirsty soul? But the bread, the water of life, both which I find nowhere but in Your word, I cannot receive without exercising my soul in them. This I begin to do, and hope I would do it well, but in vain shall I attempt except that You bless it: bless me then, O Lord; I would withhold neither part from You. Not my body; I would set my tongue about the work to speak of You; not my soul, I would exercise my heart in thinking on You; I would join them in devotion which You have joined in creation. Yes, Lord, as my mouth and my heart have conspired to sin against You, so also do they now work together to do their duty to You; my tongue is ready, my heart is ready; I would think, I would speak; think upon You, speak to You. But, Lord, what are my words? what are my thoughts? You know my thoughts, that they are altogether vanity, and our words are but the reflection of such thoughts…Both are wicked, my heart a corrupt fountain, and my tongue an unclean stream; and will I bring such a sacrifice to God? Lord, my sacrifice is no better than faltering words, wandering thoughts, and neither of them presentable to You; how much less evil thoughts and idle words? Yet such are the best of what I have to offer. What is the remedy? It is in You, O Lord, that I must find it, and for that remedy I seek it now from You. You only, O Lord, can make my tongue holy, and make my heart holy so that my tongue may speak, and my heart think that which may "be acceptable to You," yes, that which may be Your delight. Would it be enough that God should bear with, that he should not publish, the defects of my words, of my thoughts? May I presume that God shall accept of me? Even to delight in me? Have I forgotten who the Lord is? Of what majesty? Of what beauty? Can it stand with his Majesty to guarantee my acceptance? Would He take joy in the content of the words of a worm? In the thoughts of a wretch? And, Lord, I am too proud so that I think too highly of myself, and then magnify You no more. But see where the desire of Your servant carry me; how, willing to please, I do not truly consider how hard it is for dust and ashes to please God, to do that where You, O God, should be contented. But Lord, here is my comfort that I may present to You, to give words unto You; God is mine, and I cannot but have access to Him, since God may always approach Himself. Let me be weak, yet God is strong; O Lord, You are "my strength." Though I may be a slave to sin, God is a Savior; O Lord, You are my Savior; You have redeemed me from all that woeful state into which Adam cast me, yes, You have built me upon a rock, strong and sure, that the gates of hell might never prevail against me. These two things You have done for me, O Lord! May I not presume upon Your work. Though Your eyes are holy eyes, I will not run away as did Adam to hide my nakedness from You, for I am able to keep my ground; seeing I am supported by my Lord. For all my troubles, for all my sin, I will not shrink away. No, I will approach You for You are "My Redeemer." The nearer I come to You, the freer I will be of both sin and trouble. Oh, blessed state for any who is so weak, and yet so strong; so wretched, and yet so happy; weak in himself, strong in God; most happy in God, though in himself a sinful wretch. And now, my soul, You make sacrifice to God with Your words, sacrifice to God with Your thoughts, make yourself a sacrifice, do not doubt that you will be accepted, you will make an offering to even the most glorious, the most holy eyes of God. Only do not presume of yourself, presume on Him; build your words, build your thoughts upon Your Rock. Free your words, free your thoughts by your Savior, and your sacrifice will be accepted. So that "The words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord, my strength, and my Redeemer."
Prayer Focus
O God, engage my thoughts and my words. You are Lord of the universe. You command the power of the sun, moon and stars. And yet, Oh God, I take my own authority over my thoughts and my speech. You are the rightful Lord and sovereign. I submit my whole life to You, even what I think and say. Thank You for Your word. Use it to change me. Amen.
From Bunyan’s The Acceptable Sacrifice
I am therefore come to show you how and what the heart is when broken and made contrite. First. For this word broken, I take it to be a heart disabled, as to former actions, even as a man whose bones are broken is disabled, as to his way of running, leaping, or wrestling, which vainly he may wish to do; therefore, that which was called a broken heart in the text, he calls his broken bones, in the eighth verse: Cause me, to hear joy and gladness, that the bones which you have broken may rejoice' (Psa 51:8). And why is the breaking of the heart compared to the breaking of the bones? but because as when the bones are broken, the outward man is disabled as to what it was wont to do; so when the spirit is broken, the inward man is disabled as to what vanity and folly it before delighted in; hence, feebleness is joined with this brokenness of heart. 'I am feeble, ' he says, 'and sore broken' (Psa 38:8). I have lost my strength and former vigor, as to vain and sinful courses. This, then, it is to have the heart broken; namely, to have it lamed, disabled, and taken off by sense of God's wrath due to sin, from that course of life it formerly was conversant in; and to show that this work is no fancy, nor done but with great trouble to the soul, it is compared to the putting the bones out of joint, the breaking of the bones, the burning of the bones with fire, or as the taking the natural moisture from the bones, the vexing of the bones, &c. (Psa 23:14; Jer 20:9; Lam 1:13; Psa 6:2; Prov 17:22). All which are expressions adorned with such similitudes, as do undeniably declare that to sense and feeling a broken heart is a grievous thing.