WEEK 29 |
psalms this week |
"The proper thing is for us always to think of God and pray without ceasing. If we are not able to achieve this, we can at least set special times for prayer each day... Here are some natural opportunities: When we wake in the morning. Before we begin our work. Before and after meals. When we go to bed." |
Psalms 85, 86, and 87
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introduction to the Series
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Most of what we learn how to do, we learn from other people. Sometimes it is the learning that comes from specific and deliberate instruction. At other times it is the learning that comes by way of example and imitation. During 2023, our endeavor is to learn how to pray from the Psalmist.*
The Book of Psalms is the longest book in the Bible, and it is mostly a book of prayers. We will spend the year going through the book, beginning to end, and letting the Psalmist teach us by example how to pray. |
In this endeavor, we cannot benefit from his deliberate instruction, of course. What we can do, however, is take full advantage of his example. We will observe how he prays, and we will learn to imitate him.
Our approach will be week by week. The recommended practices and exercises are not daily, but rather suggestions for an individual to implement throughout the whole week. |
Exercises for this week
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Psalm 85
Read Psalm 85. As you read, consciously divide the Psalm into verses pertaining to the past. verses pertaining to the present, and verses pertaining to the future.
Evaluate the verses that seem to pertain to the past:
Evaluate the verses that seem to pertain to the present:
Evaluate the verses that seem to pertain to the future:
Having evaluated each section of the Psalm, and recognizing that the prayer is coming out of the context of the present, what do you see as the relation or role of the verses about the past to the Psalmist's prayer in the present? Having evaluated each section of the Psalm, and recognizing that the prayer is coming out of the context of the present, what do you see as the relation or role of the verses about the future to the Psalmist's prayer in the present? How is the Psalmist's reflections on the past in the midst of the troubles of the present exemplary for you? What troubles of the present should you bring to God in prayer today? Write out a prayer about the present troubles that begins with reflections on the past which take their cue from the Psalmist. How is the Psalmist's affirmations about the future in the midst of the troubles of the present exemplary for you? Now continue the prayer that you began to write earlier. Having written reflections about the past, and having written your requests from God in the present, conclude your written prayer now with affirmations about the future which take their cue from the Psalmist. What do you learn about how to pray from the author of Psalm 85? |
Psalm 86
Read Psalm 86. From beginning to end, Psalm 86 is a prayer for help. As such, it might be beneficial to you to identify an area or situation in your life for which you are praying for the Lord's help. Have that in your mind as you read Psalm 86.
As you read, identify the various reasons why -- the "for" statements -- offered by the Psalmist. That is to say, what reasons does the Psalmist give for why the Lord should intervene to help him? When you pray for the Lord's help, do you offer reasons why He should help? If so, what sort of reasons do you offer? Which of the Psalmist's expressed reasons especially resonate with you? From which ones can you learn something to be applied or implemented in your own personal prayer life? Make a list of the things that the Psalmist says about himself. To what extent do the things that the Psalmist says about himself apply to you? To what extent do you say things about yourself when you pray? Make a list of the things that the Psalmist says about the Lord. If you knew nothing about the Lord prior to reading Psalm 86, what would you know about Him based on this Psalm? Thank and praise Him for the things that are true about Him as revealed in this Psalm. To what extent do the Psalmist's affirmations about God resonate with you -- your experience, your testimony?
Make a list of the things that the Psalmist says about his troubles. Make a list of the things that the Psalmist says about his enemies. What do you perceive to be the Psalmist's problem or situation? What characters in Scripture can you imagine praying this prayer? We observe that the Psalmist says much more about himself and the Lord than he does about his enemies and his troubles, even though the Psalm is a prayer for God to help him in his troubles. How do you respond to those proportions? What do you learn from the Psalmist about how to pray from those proportions? At the beginning of our reflections on this Psalm, you were encouraged to have in mind an area or situation in your life for which you are praying for the Lord's help. Now, having reflected a good deal on Psalm 86, write a prayer asking for the Lord's help in your particular situation following the example of the Psalmist.
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Psalm 87
Read Psalm 87. This Psalm is brief and can be unclear. Accordingly, read it in several different translations in order to get a well-rounded sense for its meaning.
Psalm 87 is not a prayer in the sense of being addressed to God. Indeed, if there is an addressee for this Psalm, it is a place rather than any person, and that place is Zion. The term "Zion" is sometimes used simply as a synonym for the city of Jerusalem. Many other times in Scripture, however, "Zion" is a more symbolic term that anticipates the perfect, someday reign of God. As you read, write down what you learn about Zion -- or are even able to infer about Zion -- from Psalm 87 How would you describe the Psalmist's attitude toward or feelings about Zion? What do you perceive to be the Lord's attitude toward or feelings about Zion? What do you sense to be the Lord's will for Zion? In verse 3, Zion is identified as "city of God." What do you understand that to mean? Psalm 87 is very much about places. Zion is the most important place, but it is not the only place mentioned. While the places names may vary with English translations, here is the list as taken from the NIV: Jacob, Rahab, Babylon, Philistia, Tyre, and Cush. ("Jacob" likely refers to the region of Judah or perhaps the entire land of Israel. Rahab is understood to be a poetic way of referring to Egypt.) Make a list of these places mentioned in Psalm 87, and write down next to each what you know about that place from Scripture. You do not need to be a biblical scholar, and you do not need to do research (unless that is your preference); simply jot down your impressions about each place as it is presented elsewhere in the Bible. Now take those brief, descriptive notes and insert them into the Psalm. For example, if you had written down that Rahab (Egypt) was the place that God's people had been enslaved for 400 years, you might read verse 4 like this: "I will record the land which enslaved my people among those who acknowledge Me." After inserting your descriptions of the places into the Psalm, what do you discover about Zion? What do you discover about the Lord? What do you learn about His will? As you reflect on the Lord's promised inclusion in Zion of people from places like Egypt, Philistia, and Babylon -- places that had been at times very hostile to Israel -- what other places and people throughout history might be added to this Psalm? Make a list. Now insert the places and people that you listed into the Psalm and read it aloud. Finally, insert your own name into the Psalm. Read it aloud with your name included. Talk to the Lord about His will for Zion. Talk to Him about His will for the nations and peoples of the world. And talk to Him about His will for you. |
* We will refer to the author as “the Psalmist,” though of course not all of the Psalms were written by the same person. A significant number are attributed to David. Others are associated with Asaph, the sons of Korah, and an assortment of other individuals. Also, several dozen Psalms have no name attached to them. For the sake of ease and uniformity, we will simply refer to “the Psalmist.”