Psalm 109:15-20

Let them be before the LORD continually, that He may cut off the memory of them from the earth! For he did not remember to show kindness, but pursued the poor and needy and the brokenhearted, to put them to death. He loved to curse; let curses come upon him! He did not delight in blessing; may it be far from him! He clothed himself with cursing as his coat; may it soak into his body like water, like oil into his bones! May it be like a garment that he wraps around him, like a belt that he puts on every day! May this be the reward of my accusers from the LORD, of those who speak evil against my life!

Lord, this is difficult to pray against those who curse and persecute me. Has this not been replaced by the directive to bless those who attack me?

My prayer is that You will put an end to the days of my enemies and a beginning to their days as brothers in Your Kingdom. That You will end that flow of the generational curses in the only way possible; through the cleansing power of Your blood to remove sin from the fathers and from the children.

Psalm 109:21-29

But You, O GOD my Lord, deal on my behalf for Your name's sake; because Your steadfast love is good, deliver me! For I am poor and needy, and my heart is stricken within me. I am gone like a shadow at evening; I am shaken off like a locust. My knees are weak through fasting; my body has become gaunt, with no fat. I am an object of scorn to my accusers; when they see me, they wag their heads. Help me, O LORD my God! Save me according to Your steadfast love! Let them know that this is Your hand; You, O LORD, have done it! Let them curse, but You will bless! They arise and are put to shame, but Your servant will be glad! May my accusers be clothed with dishonor; may they be wrapped in their own shame as in a cloak!

Lord, the only sure way to proceed is through the power of the Holy Spirit; not in my strength but in yours. Fill me with Your wisdom, strength and power to stand against the onslaught of these curses as I see them revealed in myself and others. Help me, Lord to lift these curses up in prayer to You and not to address them on my own but through You.

Psalm 109:30-31

With my mouth I will give great thanks to the LORD; I will praise Him in the midst of the throng. For He stands at the right hand of the needy one, to save him from those who condemn his soul to death.

All this, Lord, for Your glory and honor. All this to show that You are indeed, the Mighty One, the God who saves, the God who provides, the God who loves, the God who forgives, the God who sustains, the God who is Light and Love and Goodness and Mercy and Peace and Joy and Righteousness and Truth and Life, the God of infinite Good.

Psalm 119:105

Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.

Your word, oh Lord, shows me each next step, each safe and secure place to put my feet, never fearing of stumbling or falling.. Your word, or Lord, provides a light to show me the glories that lie ahead as I come more fully into Your Kingdom; to fill me with that sense of anticipation of the not yet. As the progression of the dawn provides hints of the beauty of the day to come, so Your word drops those nuggets of a life fully lived in Your presence.

Psalm 119:107

I am severely afflicted; give me life, O LORD, according to Your word!

LORD, I want the Presence! I want to Know You! I want Life! Enough of this tiptoeing around, I want You. Where have I not repented? Where do I not hold You first in my life? Why are You withholding Yourself from me? LORD, I want Your Presence!

Psalm 110:1-2

A Psalm of David. The LORD says to my Lord: "Sit at My right hand, until I make Your enemies Your footstool." The LORD sends forth from Zion Your mighty scepter. Rule in the midst of Your enemies!

Your Kingdom is advancing, step by step, inexorably defeating every stronghold, bringing all subject to Your authority and Lordship.

Psalm 110:3

Your people will offer themselves freely on the day of Your power, in holy garments; from the womb of the morning, the dew of Your youth will be Yours.

Lord, what a glorious morning that will be; to be free at last, completely free of those old rags and filthy garments of the sinful man and wearing the holy garments of Your righteousness. To stand in Your presence as Your power is displayed in all its might and scope. To know that finally my free will has been exercised freely for goodness and light.

Come, Lord Jesus, come.

Psalm 110:4

The LORD has sworn and will not change His mind, "You are a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek."

You, as our Great High Priest, are leading the way, directing Your people in the battle to overcome the enemy. We are a fully equipped, throughly trained battalion, motivated by the Holy Spirit to wield the sword of the Spirit against all the Evil One's minions.

Psalm 110:5-7

The Lord is at Your right hand; He will shatter kings on the day of His wrath. He will execute judgment among the nations, filling them with corpses; He will shatter chiefs over the wide earth. He will drink from the brook by the way; therefore He will lift up His head.

Lord, You are telling me that You will be triumphant; that You will destroy all those forces of the Evil One who come against me; that I have nothing to fear as I proceed in Your strength and might; that this is Your plan. Lord, my driving desire is to join You in that victory drink.

Psalm 111:1

Praise the LORD! I will give thanks to the LORD with my whole heart, in the company of the upright, in the congregation.

Lord, a great blessing to be called to raise my voice in thanksgiving to You before the congregation of the saints. To praise You for the grace and mercy that transformed my life and for the gift of the Holy Spirit as He continues to transform me into Your image. Praise You, my Lord and Savior.

Psalm 111:2-4

Great are the works of the LORD, studied by all who delight in them. Full of splendor and majesty is His work, and His righteousness endures forever. He has caused His wondrous works to be remembered; the LORD is gracious and merciful.

Lord, these verses speak to me of the sheer joy that comes from a time of immersion in Your word as it reveals how You have worked to restore Your creation and instructs me about Your plan for continuing reconciliation.

You are opening my eyes to the study of history as a means of revealing the interplay of man's disobedience and Your grace and mercy. I cannot remember Your wondrous works for the children of man without also remembering the sin and disobedience that created the need for salvation. How long, O Lord, will You hold back Your hand?

Psalm 119:116

Uphold me according to Your promise, that I may live, and let me not be put to shame in my hope!

Your promise, my Lord, is that You will bless the children of those who are obedient to You. I call on that promise for Tony, Heidi, Sandy and Marieke; for Kim, Jeff and Alexis; for David, Lynne, Libby, Sam and Jack. That Your hand will be upon their lives as You guide them into Your kingdom. Bless them, my Lord and my Master.