Daily Prayer for January 16, 2025: Psalm 12

Save, O Lord, for the godly one is gone;
    for the faithful have vanished from among the children of man.
Everyone utters lies to his neighbor;
    with flattering lips and a double heart they speak.

May the Lord cut off all flattering lips,
    the tongue that makes great boasts,
those who say, “With our tongue we will prevail,
    our lips are with us; who is master over us?”

“Because the poor are plundered, because the needy groan,
    I will now arise,” says the Lord;
    “I will place him in the safety for which he longs.”
The words of the Lord are pure words,
    like silver refined in a furnace on the ground,
    purified seven times.

You, O Lord, will keep them;
    you will guard us from this generation forever.
On every side the wicked prowl,
    as vileness is exalted among the children of man.
(Psalm 12:1-8, ESV)

Prayer: O Father, you are good to us, having redeemed us from a world of sin and misery through the work of your beloved Son. You are patient with us, though we often wander and stray from your commands. You take pity on us because we are creatures of dust prone to ungodliness and unrighteousness. We thank you that you delight in the forgiveness of sin and we praise you that you have not given us what our sins deserve. In Christ, you love us with an eternal love. Because of Christ, we have a solid rock to anchor our souls and great hope for whatever comes tomorrow. We lament indwelling sin, and we bemoan our tendency towards double-heartedness. We know how much you despise lukewarm hearts. We know that we often say one thing and behave another. We are frequently walking contradictions, but we know that you are faithful and just to forgive us in those times.

Father, we long for pure hearts before you. We desire to be true and genuine in your worship. We desire your Spirit to search us to see if there are any hidden faults in us. We do not want to be numbered among the transgressors who flatter with their lips, but their lives are far from you. We do not want to be like the hypocrites of our Lord's day who tortured and crucified him. Though they knew much, their lives revealed they were far from you. O Father, please help us and create in us a clean heart and clean hands. Please grant us lives wholly committed to you we pray through Christ, our Lord. Amen.

Scripture Meditation: Psalm 12