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Tuesday, April 29, 2025

29Apr

Psalm 118:14-29

The Lord is my strength and my defense; he has become my salvation. Shouts of joy and victory resound in the tents of the righteous: “The Lord’s right hand has done mighty things! The Lord’s right hand is lifted high; the Lord’s right hand has done mighty things!” I will not die but live, and will proclaim what the Lord has done. The Lord has chastened me severely, but he has not given me over to death. Open for me the gates of the righteous; I will enter and give thanks to the Lord. This is the gate of the Lord through which the righteous may enter. I will give you thanks, for you answered me; you have become my salvation. The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; the Lord has done this, and it is marvelous in our eyes. The Lord has done it this very day; let us rejoice today and be glad. Lord, save us! Lord, grant us success! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. From the house of the Lord we bless you. The Lord is God, and he has made his light shine on us. With boughs in hand, join in the festal procession up to the horns of the altar. You are my God, and I will praise you; you are my God, and I will exalt you. Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever. Psalm 118:14-29 (NIV)

Having grown up with routine prayers, it was a challenge for me to learn to pray spontaneously. Being the daughter-in-law of an amazing Lutheran minister, I soon caught on to the beauty of talking with God in prayer, using my own words. I learned that a good prayer has three components: praise, gratitude and petition.

My three sisters and my niece and I have a weekly Zoom Bible study and have discussed prayer. We all agreed that thanking God and asking for help from Him are the easier parts of spontaneous prayers; it's the praise part that is more difficult.

Psalm 118 is a great example of how to include all three components of prayer. It is rich with praise but also with thankfulness for what God has done for us. The psalmist also implores God to save us and grant us success.

We have discussed how the Lord, the power of all, seems like He wouldn't need our measly praise. Afterall, who are we that our words of praise would mean anything to Him? But we know, through the teachings of the Bible, that God loves to hear our praise. As with all learning, having a good example of prayer helps.

Questions for Reflection:

  • How often is praise included in your prayers?
  • Have you thought of the three components of prayer as you speak with God?

Prayer:

Dear Heavenly Father, You are the powerful and generous savior of the world and right now, we could all use your intervention to bring justice to our nation. Please help your love for your people who are hurting right now shine through us. Help us to be the voice of justice in this world, even if it's just in small ways, person to person. Thank you for the stamina it takes to make positive changes in the world. Blessed be your name! Amen

PraisePrayer

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thankfulnessgratitude
Posted by Ann Hamilton

Ann Hamilton has been a member of Southwood Lutheran Church since 2003, transferring membership from Our Savior's Lutheran. She has been married to Jay Hamilton for almost 44 years and is the mother of four and grandmother of 7 children. She is a retired Licensed Independent Mental Health Practitioner. She's an old farm girl, having been raised on a family farm in southwestern Minnesota. She lives by faith and walks with God as much as possible.

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