Daily Devotional • July 26
Psalm 40
1 I waited patiently for the Lord;
he inclined to me and heard my cry.
2 He drew me up from the desolate pit,
out of the miry bog,
and set my feet upon a rock,
making my steps secure.
3 He put a new song in my mouth,
a song of praise to our God.
Many will see and fear
and put their trust in the Lord.
4 Happy are those who make
the Lord their trust,
who do not turn to the proud,
to those who go astray after false gods.
5 You have multiplied, O Lord my God,
your wondrous deeds and your thoughts toward us;
none can compare with you.
Were I to proclaim and tell of them,
they would be more than can be counted.
6 Sacrifice and offering you do not desire,
but you have given me an open ear.
Burnt offering and sin offering
you have not required.
7 Then I said, “Here I am;
in the scroll of the book it is written of me.
8 I delight to do your will, O my God;
your law is within my heart.”
9 I have told the glad news of deliverance
in the great congregation;
see, I have not restrained my lips,
as you know, O Lord.
10 I have not hidden your saving help within my heart;
I have spoken of your faithfulness and your salvation;
I have not concealed your steadfast love and your faithfulness
from the great congregation.
11 Do not, O Lord, withhold
your mercy from me;
let your steadfast love and your faithfulness
keep me safe forever.
12 For evils have encompassed me
without number;
my iniquities have overtaken me
until I cannot see;
they are more than the hairs of my head,
and my heart fails me.
13 Be pleased, O Lord, to deliver me;
O Lord, make haste to help me.
14 Let all those be put to shame and confusion
who seek to snatch away my life;
let those be turned back and brought to dishonor
who desire my hurt.
15 Let those be appalled because of their shame
who say to me, “Aha, Aha!”
16 But may all who seek you
rejoice and be glad in you;
may those who love your salvation
say continually, “Great is the Lord!”
17 As for me, I am poor and needy,
but the Lord takes thought for me.
You are my help and my deliverer;
do not delay, O my God.
Meditation
“I waited patiently upon the LORD; he stooped to me and heard my cry.” (Psalm 40:1)
In the petitions of this morning’s psalms, I am reminded of the Great Litany. In previous generations, the Litany played a regular role in the life of prayer. In addition to Sunday services, it frequently accompanied the Offices, especially on Wednesdays and Fridays.
As we are bidden to turn to the Lord in all our needs, the scope of the Litany’s petitions seeks to cover the whole spectrum of human concerns, especially when prayed alongside the faithful recitation of the Psalms. Nothing is taken for granted, and we are hard-pressed to find a petition that is not applicable here and now. And those themes which seem disconnected from our own lives and experiences are opportunities for us to intercede for others both close at hand and at the opposite ends of the earth.
Perhaps it is time to restore the Great Litany to a more regular place in our prayers. Rather than wait for Advent, Lent, or some great catastrophe to prompt our return to these riches, may we instead plumb the breadth and depth of all our petitions in season and out, entrusting ourselves, our neighbors, the church, and the world to the one who rescues us from every trouble.
- O Lord, let thy mercy be showed upon us;
- As we do put our trust in thee.
“You are my helper and my deliverer; do not tarry, O my God.” (Psalm 40:19)
The Rev. Benjamin Hankinson is the director of admissions for Nashotah House Theological Seminary and priest in charge of St. James in West Bend, Wisconsin. Originally from South Carolina, he has also served parishes in the Diocese of Springfield.
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Daily Devotional Cycle of Prayer
Today we pray for:
The Diocese of Highveld – The Anglican Church of Southern Africa
St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, Clinton, North Carolina