Prayerfully Looking Up To God In The Morning and All Day Long

 For years when I thought of Psalm 5 it was the words of the first 2 or 3 verses that came to mind. 

Give ear to my words, O Lord, Consider my meditation.  Give heed to the voice of my cry, my King and my God, for to You I will pray. My voice You shall hear in the morning, O Lord; In the morning I will direct it to You, and I will look up. Psalm 5:1-3

Back in probably the 1980’s – well, now I just looked it up and it was actually written in 1975 – so now I’m dating myself – anyway, it was and continued to be, for a long time, a popular little prayer song that encourages us to look up to God because He hears us and cares and acts on our behalf.  Here’s a short clip.  Even though it’s dated language there’s something lovely about a heart turned to God in love and trust.

Give ear to my words O Lord

Consider my meditation

Harken unto the voice of my cry

My King and my God

For unto Thee will I pray

My voice shalt Thou hear

In the morning

O Lord in the morning

Will I direct my prayer

Unto Thee and will look up

Lord let this not just be some words and a quiet peaceful tune in our ear but Lord let this be the way we orient ourselves in this day and every day.  Help us to open our hearts to You as the day begins, knowing that You are all we could ever want or need. 

Thank you for being a God to whom we can look up.  We need to be able to do that for so many reasons as pressures of life and weariness weigh us down sometimes.  Help us to look up no matter what we are facing or feeling.  Help us to see Your heart of love and Your face of acceptance as we come to You and bring our concerns to You.  Lord in this day we will direct our prayers to You and we will look up. Amen

Well, as I said, for many years those were the verses that came to mind whenever Psalm 5 was mentioned.  But, as with so many of the Psalms, even the shorter ones like Psalm 5 there are other little treasures that, in a moment, can come to life in our hearts.  The final 2 verses of this Psalm really encouraged me when I read them.

But let all who take refuge in you rejoice; let them sing joyful praises forever. Spread your protection over them, that all who love your name may be filled with joy. For you bless the godly, O Lord; you surround them with your shield of love.  Psalm 5:11-12

Even though we are seeming to come to the end of this season of the pandemic, there are still lots of things that give us pause and keep us on the alert.  So, it’s with such reassurance that my heart responds to the description of God spreading His protection over us and shielding us with His love.  Our part is to take refuge in God and let joyful praise rise up in us as we live in God’s care.

And so that’s what we commit ourselves to do today, Loving God.  We don’t want to try to navigate today with all it’s concerns and challenges on our own.  We don’t want to live burdened down with fear and anxiety around all the unknowns that are still our there with variants lurking and efficacy of vaccines to meet them still unknown.  Today we choose to live with You, in Your care, God.  We receive the protection You are providing us by following Your heart and walking in Your ways. 

We’re so grateful that it’s not about even doing that perfectly because we do so often get caught up in this or that worry or self-centered way of thinking and behaving  But, we want to be made aware of what’s going on in our hearts in those moments so we can return to you and seek the protection You are giving and be shielded by Your love. 

We want to let joy fill our hearts and replace unnecessary concerns.  We will give ourselves to loving You today and trust that as we do, You will give us that joy and peace that is even beyond our understanding.  Amen

But let all who take refuge in you rejoice; let them sing joyful praises forever. Spread your protection over them, that all who love your name may be filled with joy. For you bless the godly, O Lord; you surround them with your shield of love.  Psalm 5:11-12