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A Prayer about God’s Pleasure and Our Trust

     His delight is not in the strength of the horse, nor his delight in the legs of a man, but the Lord takes pleasure in those who fear him, in those who hope in his steadfast lovePs. 147:10-11

Dear heavenly Father, once again I come before you as a repeat offender—a man suffering from doxological dementia, grace amnesia, and gospel forgetfulness. I’m one of your sons who give you so much opportunity to demonstrate the wonder of your “unlimited patience” (1 Tim. 1:16). I’m a perpetual candidate for summer school in the gospel.

Why is it, when I’m feeling a little disconnected from you or appropriately disappointed with me; or when the accusations of the enemy are blasting, or the sacrifice other believers is more obvious; or when my fears are threatening, or my idols are failing—why is it that my default mode is to lace up my running shoes and get busy for you?

Instead of running to you for mercy and grace, I start running to do something to assuage my guilty conscience calm my disquieted heart, and fuel my still-inflatable pride.

But as this Scripture says, you don’t find any pleasure or delight in the strength and movement of my “legs”—of what I can do for you. You find great pleasure as I put my hope in what you’ve done for me in Jesus.   Indeed, where can I find your unfailing, unwavering, unending love? Only in the gospel of your grace; only in union with Christ; only in my declared state of righteousness, not in my fruitless attempts at righteousness. This is so counterintuitive, so contrary to the way I’m wired and the way the world, literally, works.

Holy Father, to fear you isn’t to be afraid of you, rather it’s to live in knee-buckling awe of every good thing you’ve done for us in Christ. We fear you the most when we hope most fully in your unfailing love for us in Jesus.

Should I forget where I parked my car, the address of my home, or even my own name, may I never forget this glorious gospel. So very Amen I pray, in Jesus’ most grace-full and worship-worthy name.

 

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