Wednesday, November 20, 2024  

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Today's Scripture
Psalm 132:1–12

O Lord, remember in David’s favor all the hardships he endured;

how he swore to the Lord and vowed to the Mighty One of Jacob,

“I will not enter my house or get into my bed;

I will not give sleep to my eyes or slumber to my eyelids,

until I find a place for the Lord, a dwelling place for the Mighty One of Jacob.”

We heard of it in Ephrathah; we found it in the fields of Jaar.

“Let us go to his dwelling place; let us worship at his footstool.”

Rise up, O Lord, and go to your resting place, you and the ark of your might.

Let your priests be clothed with righteousness, and let your faithful shout for joy.

For your servant David’s sake do not turn away the face of your anointed one.

The Lord swore to David a sure oath from which he will not turn back: “One of the sons of your body I will set on your throne.

If your sons keep my covenant and my decrees that I shall teach them, their sons also, forevermore, shall sit on your throne.” (NRSV)

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Reflection

In this psalm, King David is prayerfully pleading for God to remember him. To remember how he had been faithful through many hardships and how he desired to build a place in which the Lord could reside and reign amongst God’s people and thus fulfill the promise God made to David. David was committed, steadfast, and expectant of God’s blessings for himself and generations coming after him. God heard and answered David’s prayer.

There are times in our Christian journey that we too ask God to remember us. Through life’s challenges and what feels like a long time of prayers deferred we secretly wonder, “Did God forget about me?”

However, even in our weariness, God is still working. If we continue to believe and live faithfully, we realize God has been honoring God’s promises all along just like with King David. God has given us a place for God to dwell and bless us and that place is within our hearts. It is in believing in our hearts that God is faithful that our prayers will be made manifest, perhaps not in all the ways we expected but in ways that show how God has not forgotten or abandoned us.

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Prayer
Lord, we thank you for residing in our hearts and hearing our earnest prayers. May we always be reminded of your faithfulness even during difficult times. We give you praise for all your abundant blessings and remember that a prayer deferred is not a prayer denied.

Amen.

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Written by Michelle Epps, Member of Fourth Presbyterian Church

Reflection and Prayer © Fourth Presbyterian Church

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