Day 123 Psalms 41:4-9
Psalm 41:4 I said, “LORD, be merciful to me; Heal my soul, for I have sinned against You.” 5My enemies speak evil of me: “When will he die, and his name perish?” 6And if he comes to see me, he speaks lies; His heart gathers iniquity to itself; When he goes out, he tells it. 7All who hate me whisper together against me; Against me they devise my hurt. 8“An evil disease,” they say, “clings to him. And now that he lies down, he will rise up no more.” 9Even my own familiar friend in whom I trusted, Who ate my bread, Has lifted up his heel against me.
Lord, have mercy on me. I am only a sinner saved by grace. If You should keep a record of iniquities, then no one could survive. Lord, I do weep and mourn over my sins and ask that You have mercy on me and not give me what my sins deserve.
The psalmist goes on to confess that he is a sinner who does not deserve Your kindness, but he pleads for mercy and forgiveness to the God who gives mercy and forgiveness to those who come to Him truly and humbly. So, I come to You, O Lord, as a sinner who is repentant of my sin and asking for your mercy.
O God do not let those who are my enemies destroy me. They want to pull me down and see me destroyed. They long to see my hurt, though I have prayed long and hard for Your mercy and grace upon them. They want to know when I will be broken and when I will fall apart. They want me to be gone and to remove the influence I have. They are eager for my downfall that they may rise in power.
O Lord Jesus, is this not what they did to You? The high priests and the Pharisees plotted against You. They sought to trap You even though You were the perfect sinless, Son of God. They tried to bring about Your downfall and humanly it seems that they succeeded. But even in their supposed triumph, they were doing God’s greater will which was to send His Son as a sacrifice for the sins of all who would trust in You. O Jesus, when I am plotted against for even the smallest sin, when people seek my hurt and my destruction, help me to look to You. Even in Your death, You won and You rose again.
O Lord, help Your children remain strong with Your strength, even when our enemies seek to twist our words and mock us. O Lord, see our troubles and help us. O Lord, protect us from their plots and schemes.
Through Jesus’ victory alone, Amen!
Growing in Prayer 