song of praise

Good morning friends,
Our passage from Psalms this morning mirrors the passage from Isaiah we heard yesterday in our worship services. The psalmist prays for God's blessings on the King of Israel. The blessings and abilities he desires for the king include a heart for the poor, righteousness and justice. The psalmist expects that the king's reign will bring peace and prosperity to Israel. God is expected to work through the king. Anything the king achieves will have more to do with God's blessing than the king's individual gifts, and even those gifts are from God.

We're reading this passage to remind us of the kind of king Christ is. The passage also reminds us that our strength and success comes from God. We're called to be faithful, to trust and seek God's power and voice. Sometimes in our lives and even in our ministries we try to do it all, but we don't have to. God is with us, and we will be more successful in our endeavors if we seek God's will and strength.

God bless,
Sam

Psalm 72:1-7, 18-19

1Give the king your justice, O God, and your righteousness to a king's son.
2May he judge your people with righteousness, and your poor with justice.
3May the mountains yield prosperity for the people, and the hills, in righteousness.
4May he defend the cause of the poor of the people,
give deliverance to the needy, and crush the oppressor.
5May he live while the sun endures, and as long as the moon,
throughout all generations.
6May he be like rain that falls on the mown grass,
like showers that water the earth.
7In his days may righteousness flourish and peace abound, until the moon is no more.
18Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel, who alone does wondrous things.
19Blessed be his glorious name forever;
may his glory fill the whole earth. Amen and Amen.