Daily Prayer for January 22, 2025: Psalm 16

Preserve me, O God, for in you I take refuge.
I say to the Lord, “You are my Lord;
    I have no good apart from you.”

As for the saints in the land, they are the excellent ones,
    in whom is all my delight.

The sorrows of those who run after another god shall multiply;
    their drink offerings of blood I will not pour out
    or take their names on my lips.

The Lord is my chosen portion and my cup;
    you hold my lot.
The lines have fallen for me in pleasant places;
    indeed, I have a beautiful inheritance.

I bless the Lord who gives me counsel;
     in the night also my heart instructs me.

I have set the Lord always before me;
    because he is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken.

Therefore my heart is glad, and my whole being rejoices;
    my flesh also dwells secure.
For you will not abandon my soul to Sheol,
    or let your holy one see corruption.

You make known to me the path of life;
    in your presence there is fullness of joy;
    at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.
(Psalm 16:1-11, ESV)

Prayer: Our God in heaven, we praise you for the marvelous grace you dispense to your redeemed people daily. We know we are underserving of the least of your mercies, and we thank you for the forgiveness of sin that you offer through the work of the Lord Jesus Christ, your beloved Son. We thank you that we can cry out to you for help in times of trouble. Unlike the deaf idols of our day, you have ears to hear and eyes to see. You listen to us when we pray because you care for us. You are our God, and we are your people. Therefore, as our God, we can take refuge in you all our days. We thank you for not needing the idols of this fallen world because we know that those who put their hope in them will be brought to shame and sorrow. Instead, you give us joy, and that joy is our strength. You provide us with counsel through your Word, and it is there that we find the light to guide us on this path we are walking. You have not abandoned us to our devices, but give us your mind as communicated by the Eternal Spirit in your eternal and infallible Word. Though we are your people, we know that we sin and sometimes sin egregiously by erecting idols in our lives. We have idols of all kinds. We confess that truth, knowing that we are idol factories. Please forgive us and purge those things out of us. Please cause us to have glad hearts and rejoice in you because, unlike those idols we make, you will never abandon us. Please help us to guard our hearts from those things that displease you and lead us to the eternal joy that we long for in the New Heavens and the New Earth. WE pray these things through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Scripture Meditation: Psalm 16