A Prayer from the Heart

As I have been reading through the bible this year I have come across many passages that motivate and inspire me to draw nearer to our Lord and convict deep within to be a more obedient and faithful follower. Yesterday was another one of those moments as I read the latter half of 1 Chronicles 16. Below is David's Psalm of prayer in the chapter:

8 "Give thanks to the LORD, call on his name;
make known among the nations what he has done.

9 Sing to him, sing praise to him;
tell of all his wonderful acts.

10 Glory in his holy name;
let the hearts of those who seek the LORD rejoice.

11 Look to the LORD and his strength;
seek his face always.

12 Remember the wonders he has done,
his miracles, and the judgments he pronounced,

13 O descendants of Israel his servant,
O sons of Jacob, his chosen ones.

14 He is the LORD our God;
his judgments are in all the earth.

15 He remembers [b] his covenant forever,
the word he commanded, for a thousand generations,

16 the covenant he made with Abraham,
the oath he swore to Isaac.

17 He confirmed it to Jacob as a decree,
to Israel as an everlasting covenant:

18 "To you I will give the land of Canaan
as the portion you will inherit."

19 When they were but few in number,
few indeed, and strangers in it,

20 they [c] wandered from nation to nation,
from one kingdom to another.

21 He allowed no man to oppress them;
for their sake he rebuked kings:

22 "Do not touch my anointed ones;
do my prophets no harm."

23 Sing to the LORD, all the earth;
proclaim his salvation day after day.

24 Declare his glory among the nations,
his marvelous deeds among all peoples.

25 For great is the LORD and most worthy of praise;
he is to be feared above all gods.

26 For all the gods of the nations are idols,
but the LORD made the heavens.

27 Splendor and majesty are before him;
strength and joy in his dwelling place.

28 Ascribe to the LORD, O families of nations,
ascribe to the LORD glory and strength,

29 ascribe to the LORD the glory due his name.
Bring an offering and come before him;
worship the LORD in the splendor of his [d] holiness.

30 Tremble before him, all the earth!
The world is firmly established; it cannot be moved.

31 Let the heavens rejoice, let the earth be glad;
let them say among the nations, "The LORD reigns!"

32 Let the sea resound, and all that is in it;
let the fields be jubilant, and everything in them!

33 Then the trees of the forest will sing,
they will sing for joy before the LORD,
for he comes to judge the earth.

34 Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good;
his love endures forever.

35 Cry out, "Save us, O God our Savior;
gather us and deliver us from the nations,
that we may give thanks to your holy name,
that we may glory in your praise."

36 Praise be to the LORD, the God of Israel,
from everlasting to everlasting.
Then all the people said "Amen" and "Praise the LORD."

The prayer begins with thanks to our Lord. It is so easy to bypass this part of prayer as we call on the Lord for things we may need, comfort in a trial, or as we intercede for others, but we cannot fail to give thanks to God for all He has done, is doing and will do in the future! It isn't difficult to come up with a handful of reasons on a daily basis to give thanks. Do it today!

Verse 11 tells us to "seek His face always"! In every moment of life, in every decision, in every triumph and in every trial we must seek Him, His wisdom and His faithfulness. Immediately after it tells us to remember the wonderful acts He has done! Again give thanks to our Lord.

The next few verses remind us of His never-changing character and His faithfulness as He keeps His promises. The covenants He made with man were never broken and the future acts He has promised won't be either.

Verse 23 tells us to proclaim His salvation day after day! That means as Matthew reminds us we need to be fulfilling the great commission on a daily and regular basis. It isn't an option friends, it is a command from the Lord. For as the next verses remind us He is good and He is MOST worthy of praise and should be feared as well! Verse 30 in fact tells us to "tremble" before Him.

And what better way to end then with a praise to the Lord. " Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good;his love endures forever." May we always remember He is good all the time.

Let our prayers be times of thanksgiving, rejoicing, praising, glorifying, asking and waiting and may the God that has been faithful until now be faithful FOREVER!