Psalm 66: 8-20
Praise our God, O peoples, let the sound of his peoples be heard; he has preserved our lives and kept our feet from slipping. For you, O God, tested us; you refined us like silver. You brought us into prison and laid burdens on our backs. You let men ride over our hearts; we went through fire and water, but you brought us to a place of abundance.
I will come to your temple with burnt offerings and fulfill my vows to you–vows my lips promised and my mouth spoke when I was in trouble. I will sacrifice fat animals to you and an offering of rams; I will offer bulls and goats. Selah
Come and listen, all you who fear God; let me tell you what he has done for me. I cried out to him with my mouth; his praise was on my tongue. If I had cherished sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened; but God has surely listened and heard my voice in prayer. Praise be to God, who has not rejected my prayer or withheld his love from me!
A Thought
Sometimes God is testing our faith while He is refining us like silver to bring us to an abundance with Him. If we have any sin that we are holding in our heart, our Lord will not listen to our prayers. During these times, we should check our hearts to make sure there is no unconfessed sin; we should fulfill our vows and draw near in prayer with faith and praise; we should remember to call with encouragement to tell others what God has done for us in the past; and finally just know that God is alive, listening, at work to answer our prayers, not withholding any good thing, especially not His great love for us. Praise be the name of the Lord.
Our Prayer
Father, search our hearts to reveal any sin that may be within us. Show us ways to use our time wisely to honor you in prayer and study of your word. Thank you for the awakening that you are sending to us by the power of your Holy Spirit to fulfill your mission of the Church to spread the good news of your word, filled with your love and forgiveness, to all the world. We ask in Jesus’ name, amen.
