READ: Ezekiel 1,2; Psalms 123; Titus 1
SCRIPTURE: Psalms 123: 1 I lift up my eyes to you, to you
who sit enthroned in heaven.
2 As the eyes of slaves look to the hand of their master, as the eyes of a
female slave look to the hand of her mistress, so our eyes look to the Lord our
God, till he shows us his mercy.
OBSERVATION: Eye contact is a
nonverbal form of communication. In conversations, eye contact indicates the
interest, attention, and involvement of the parties involved. In Christianity,
prayer is our communication with God. However, when we pray, we bow our heads
and close our eyes. Interestingly, nowhere in the bible does it say that we
should close our eyes while praying. People give different explanations to
support the Christian practice of closing eyes during prayer. Some say closing
eyes helps us avoid any distractions from prayer and focus our thoughts and
mind on God alone. We should remember that the purpose of prayer is not our
praying posture or actions but communicating with God. Psalm 123 is one of the Pilgrim songs that
travelers sing as they ascend to Mount Zion to visit the temple of God in
Jerusalem. These pilgrim songs reveal that the pilgrims come from a long
distance and look for God’s help for their problems. In Psalm 123, the psalmist
expresses that people experienced contempt and ridicule from their arrogant and
proud enemies. The psalmist prays for God’s mercies by telling his people’s state.
In the first two verses of Ps.123,
the psalmist uses the word eyes four times to give us a better understanding of
his petition. The eyes of the servants/slaves look to the hand of their
master/mistress, but the psalmist’s eyes look to the Lord his God. While the
servants look for provision or direction, the psalmist seeks the face of God,
who provides everything. In a way, he says that all he needs is God. A man of
God recently shared his concern that God wants his people to seek his face and
commune with him daily, but people always look at God’s hands with the
expectation of receiving his blessings. Jesus taught us, “seek first his
kingdom and his righteousness” (Mt.6:33). The psalmist prays not only for
himself; he also prays for his community as well. He says, “till he shows us
his mercy.”
It means that he would patiently wait for God to answer his prayer. When we
humbly pray, “have mercy on me,” God always answers such prayers (Lk.11:10-14).
When we look to the Lord our God, we find hope, strength, confidence, and
deliverance. God is our strength and salvation. Let us seek his face earnestly
every day.
APPLICATION: I will always seek God’s face. God is my
helper; “My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth” (Ps. 121:2).
When I face contempt and ridicule, I will say, “The Lord is my helper; I will
not be afraid. What can mere mortals do to me?” (Heb.13:6). My eyes are on God,
not on my problems and enemies.
PRAYER: Almighty God, thank you for listening to my
prayers and answering them without any discrimination. Lord, give me the heart
to first seek you and help me live a god-depending life. Amen.
- Arputharaj Samuel
+91 9538328573
Day - 306
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