Hey, Church!

The wilderness psalms, like psalms of lament, offer an invaluable model for prayer in difficult seasons. They weave together a rich and beautiful range of emotions: longing alongside satisfaction, weariness alongside rest, and trouble alongside hope. One of my favorite songwriters set Psalm 63 to music, and so that wilderness psalm has become very special to me over the years.

Listen to Fernando Ortega’s “Oh God, You Are My God (Psalm 63)”:

First, David turns to God. Being such an obvious point, it is easy to overlook it! When you are in a “dry and weary land,” to whom do you voice your complaints? David teaches us to direct them to God, who alone is able to save us from our troubles.

“O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water.”

Second, David remembers better days, when he stood in God’s sanctuary. Sometimes, when we feel left alone and exposed to life’s harsher elements, we would do well to direct our thoughts to past demonstrations of our Father’s power, glory, and steadfast love. In remembering the good character of God, we gain confidence in His purposes, however unpleasant they may be in the moment.

“So I have looked upon you in the sanctuary, beholding your power and glory. Because your steadfast love is better than life, my lips will praise you.”

Thirdly, David’s hunger and thirst, which caused him to remember God’s past faithfulness, then ends in firm resolve to cling to God alone from that day forward.

“So I will bless you as long as I live; in your name I will lift up my hands. My soul will be satisfied as with fat and rich food, and my mouth will praise you with joyful lips, when I remember you upon my bed, and meditate on you in the watches of the night; for you have been my help, and in the shadow of your wings I will sing for joy. My soul clings to you; your right hand upholds me.”

Will you bring your needs to God today?

Your brother,

Ryan