Read
A Prayer
1I run to you, Lord,
for protection.
Don't disappoint me.
2You do what is right,
so come to my rescue.
Listen to my prayer
and keep me safe.
3Be my mighty rock, the place
where I can always run
for protection.
Save me by your command!
You are my mighty rock
and my fortress.
4Come and save me, Lord God,
from vicious and cruel
and brutal enemies!
5I depend on you,
and I have trusted you
since I was young.
6I have relied on you
from the day I was born.
You brought me safely
through birth,
and I always praise you.
7Many people think of me
as something evil.
But you are my mighty protector,
8and I praise and honor you
all day long.
9Don't throw me aside
when I am old;
don't desert me
when my strength is gone.
10My enemies are plotting
because they want me dead.
11They say, “Now we'll catch you!
God has deserted you,
and no one can save you.”
12Come closer, God!
Please hurry and help.
13Embarrass and destroy
all who want me dead;
disgrace and confuse
all who want to hurt me.
14I will never give up hope
or stop praising you.
15All day long I will tell
the wonderful things you do
to save your people.
But you have done much more
than I could possibly know.
16I will praise you, Lord God,
for your mighty deeds
and your power to save.
17You have taught me
since I was a child,
and I never stop telling about
your marvelous deeds.
18Don't leave me when I am old
and my hair turns gray.
Let me tell future generations
about your mighty power.
19Your deeds of kindness
are known in the heavens.
No one is like you!
20You made me suffer a lot,
but you will bring me
back from this deep pit
and give me new life.
21You will make me truly great
and take my sorrow away.
22I will praise you, God,
the Holy One of Israel.
You are faithful.
I will play the harp
and sing your praises.
23You have rescued me!
I will celebrate and shout,
singing praises to you
with all my heart.
24All day long I will announce
your power to save.
I will tell how you disgraced
and disappointed those
who wanted to hurt me.
Reflect
I sat in my car and cried out to God. I was about to walk into a grade four classroom and was supposed to teach them about Jesus, but my heart wasn’t in it. In fact my heart was very far from being able to do it. I had just spent a sleepless night worrying about a situation in our family. The circumstances were dire and I saw no solution in sight.
But God told me to go to the school that morning. So I cried out to him, pleading with him to show up on my behalf. I stepped into the classroom and saw him do just that. He taught the class that day and it wasn’t just those grade four students who learned the lesson. By the time it was over I was singing praises to his name. My circumstances hadn’t changed but my heart had.
Psalm 71 is a cry for help. David is in distress. He pleads for God’s mercy and justice to reign, describing all that is wrong in his world. His life is in danger, the circumstances dire. But David declares that God is his refuge, his strength, his hope. He remembers that God has been with him since he was a child and he states with certainty that God will save him now, even though he has lived through difficult circumstances. Throughout this psalm David declares that he will praise God continually no matter what. He says: “My tongue will tell of your righteous acts all day long…” (v. 24).
Sometimes it all comes down to making a simple choice. We can turn to God or turn away from him; we can choose to try and make life work all on our own or choose to trust God.
Respond
Our Father in heaven, help us to turn to you no matter what. Help us to remember that you are our refuge, our hope and our salvation, despite any circumstances that make us want to believe the contrary. Amen.
Marcia Lee Laycock
Marcia Lee Laycock is an award-winning writer and sought-after speaker. Having lived a few kilometers from the Arctic Circle, and two degrees off the Equator, her writing draws from a rich field of experiences. Marcia was the winner of the Best New Canadian Christian Author Award for her novel, One Smooth Stone, and she now has four devotional books and a fantasy series in print, which have also garnered awards. Marcia lives in central Alberta with her pastor husband. They have three grown daughters and two huge Great Dane grand-puppies.