Hello, I’m Daniel Westfall on the channel “Pray With Me”.

Do you find God doesn’t answer when you pray? Doesn’t reward you when you work hard? Leaves you lonely when you look for community? 

Psalm 9 helps us change gears from “Oh, woe is me” to “Praise God who knows and cares.” 

The psalm begins:
  I will give thanks to you, Lord, with all my heart.
    I will sing praises to your name, O Most High (v 1-2). 

Great beginning. Cue some worship music, sing a happy hymn, tell God you’re thankful. 

The psalm continues: 
   You have rebuked the nations and destroyed the wicked, 
      blotting out their name forever. 
   Endless ruin has overtaken my enemies, 
      even the memory of them has perished (v 5-6). 

God watches over the earth and the nations, noticing the evil and the good. He will crush your enemies forever. 

What enemies, you ask? The psalmist’s enemies were kings and nations that provoked war. But my war is a battle for my mind and heart. God promises to heal the diseases that infect my body, the moods that afflict my mind, the disturbances that affect my relationships, the demons that drive me insane. I look forward to the day when endless ruin will overtake these enemies, when even the memory of them perishes.

The psalm continues:
  The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed,
    a stronghold in times of trouble.
  Those who know your name trust in you.
    You never forsake those who seek you (v 9-10).

If I brood on my loneliness, vulnerability, and helplessness, I get depressed. The psalmist offers a more helpful picture of my life: God is my refuge and stronghold. He is a  castle I can run to, lifting the drawbridge and dropping the metal gate to keep out my enemies. 

God guards the walls of my life and shoots arrows at my enemies. 

Let’s pray. 

O father, with the psalmist we pray:
  Arise, Lord, don’t let mortals triumph.
    Judge the nations.
  Strike them with terror,
    let them know their mortality (v 19-20). 

Teach us to let go of our fears for the present and future, to stop obsessing on our spiritual experience. Teach us to worship you and thank you, when we feel you are present and when we feel you are absent.

You are God, God of the world.
You are the judge of nations.
You are eternal, everlasting. 

We come to you, like serfs running to a castle of refuge, like pilgrims seeking the safety of a hostel, like children to a father’s loving embrace. 

   You, God, will never forget the needy;
    the hope of the afflicted will not perish (v 18).

We surf an internet of lies and deceit. We feel darkness that calls us to despair. We see violence that defies hope. Yet, we believe you see, we know you care. In your time you will act on our behalf, establishing goodness and justice. 

We choose to be glad and rejoice in you.
  We sing the praises of your name, O most high. (v 2). 

Amen

I’m Daniel, on the channel “Pray with Me”.  

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