Daily Prayer for January 13, 2025: Psalm 9
I will give thanks to the Lord with my whole heart;
I will recount all of your wonderful deeds.
I will be glad and exult in you;
I will sing praise to your name, O Most High.
When my enemies turn back,
they stumble and perish before your presence.
For you have maintained my just cause;
you have sat on the throne, giving righteous judgment.
You have rebuked the nations; you have made the wicked perish;
you have blotted out their name forever and ever.
The enemy came to an end in everlasting ruins;
their cities you rooted out;
the very memory of them has perished.
But the Lord sits enthroned forever;
he has established his throne for justice,
and he judges the world with righteousness;
he judges the peoples with uprightness.
The Lord is a stronghold for the oppressed,
a stronghold in times of trouble.
And those who know your name put their trust in you,
for you, O Lord, have not forsaken those who seek you.
Sing praises to the Lord, who sits enthroned in Zion!
Tell among the peoples his deeds!
For he who avenges blood is mindful of them;
he does not forget the cry of the afflicted.
Be gracious to me, O Lord!
See my affliction from those who hate me,
O you who lift me up from the gates of death,
that I may recount all your praises,
that in the gates of the daughter of Zion
I may rejoice in your salvation.
The nations have sunk in the pit that they made;
in the net that they hid, their own foot has been caught.
The Lord has made himself known; he has executed judgment;
the wicked are snared in the work of their own hands. Higgaion.
The wicked shall return to Sheol,
all the nations that forget God.
For the needy shall not always be forgotten,
and the hope of the poor shall not perish forever.
Arise, O Lord! Let not man prevail;
let the nations be judged before you!
Put them in fear, O Lord!
Let the nations know that they are but men!
(Psalm 9:1-20 , ESV)
Prayer: Our God, there are many reasons to give you thanks, and we desire to do that with a heart full of remembrance for your work in our lives. You are the faithful God, performing extraordinary acts of kindness to us each day. We confess that we often take them for granted, and it will serve us and encourage us to think about your mercy and grace displayed in the simplest of ways each day. You provide our daily bread as we ask often. You feed us because you know that our bodies need it. You enrich our souls with your Word because you know that we do not live on bread only. You give us the means to move through our day, running the various errands and accomplishing the numerous things we need to do. You give us homes where we can lay our heads and find warmth from the bitter winters. You give us water to drink and provide other means to sustain us. You show yourself faithful in many ways, and we thank you, O God, and praise you for being mindful of us. You give us your Son and the help of your Spirit each day, and you provide us the grace to move from day to day as pilgrims in this world. Therefore, we will praise and exult your name, O Most High. We will be glad in the work of your hands. Yet, Lord, we confess that there are times when this rotten world and its evil people seek to ruin us. We witness their hateful acts, and it sometimes brings us to despair. Yet, we can still be thankful in those times of struggle because you have promised to act with justice against all those who hate you and your church. You sit on your throne, and the behavior of evil people does not move you. We also thank you because you are mindful of our concerns and afflictions, and you have promised to help us as a strong fortress in the face of the storms of this life. Forgive us, Father, when we fret in the face of hard times and evil actors. Please help us to trust you and please give us more grace, we pray through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Scripture Meditation: Psalm 9