Psalm 44

A Bible Devotion from Psalm 44

In God We Boast All Day Long

Awake! Why do You sleep, O Lord? Arise! Do not cast us off forever. Why do You hide Your face, and forget our affliction and our oppression? For our soul is bowed down to the dust; our body clings to the ground. Arise for our help, and redeem us for Your mercies' sake.
Psalm 44:23-26, NKJV

What do you do when the bad days come? We all have been there! We cry out to God for help, but it seems as though He is sleeping. We look to God and say, "Hey, I never signed up for this."

It is interesting to follow the progression of this Psalm. The Psalmist begins by recounting the history of God's faithfulness. We have heard with our ears, O God, our fathers have told us, the deeds You did in their days, in days of old: You drove out the nations with Your hand, but them You planted; You afflicted the peoples, and cast them out. For they did not gain possession of the land by their own sword, nor did their own arm save them; but it was Your right hand, Your arm, and the light of Your countenance, because You favored them. Psalm 44:1-3

Everything the Psalmist recounts is true; we remember the history of the Children of Israel. But, what happened after that; what are we most inclined to do? We are most inclined to forget God; to forget that everything we have and everything we are is from God. We live in an age that forgets God and honors and worships humanity!

What about you? Don't play around with God! Yes, He is loving, kind, and merciful; but He is also a jealous God who commands honor, respect, and worship from His people. Try this: take 15 minutes out of your day just to contemplate God and to praise Him for everything He has done for you and for the world around you. This is what true fellowship with God is! Then, pray to Him first of all in forgiveness, then thankfulness, and lastly bring your requests before Him.

ACTS: Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, and Supplication. Try following this acronym in your own personal praying. We tend to rush right to the supplication. Don't make that mistake; there is so much more to praying and fellowshipping with God. Soon you will fellowship with God on a level you have rarely experienced before.

Pray today that God will give you a spirit of adoration before Him throughout the entire day.

Next: Psalm 45, Out of the Ivory Palaces

More Devotions on the 44th Psalm from my blog, Daily Bible Devotions

Arm of God, verses 1-3

My King, verses 4-8

Cast Off, verses 9-16

True Heart, verses 17-26