Saturday, July 21, 2012

Waiting to see Your face


Psalm 27
The Lord is my light and my salvation 
    whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold of my life—
    of whom shall I be afraid? 
When evil men advance against me
    to devour my flesh,[a]
when my enemies and my foes attack me,
    they will stumble and fall. 
Though an army besiege me,
    my heart will not fear; 
though war break out against me,
    even then will I be confident.
One thing I ask of the Lord,
    this is what I seek:
that I may dwell in the house of the Lord
    all the days of my life, 
to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord
    and to seek him in his temple.
For in the day of trouble 
    he will keep me safe in his dwelling;
he will hide me in the shelter of his tabernacle
    and set me high upon a rock. 
Then my head will be exalted 
    above the enemies who surround me; 
at his tabernacle will I sacrifice with shouts of joy; 
    I will sing and make music to the Lord.
Hear my voice when I call, O Lord;
    be merciful to me and answer me. 
My heart says of you, “Seek his[b] face! 
    Your face, Lord, I will seek.
Do not hide your face from me,
    do not turn your servant away in anger; 
    you have been my helper. 
Do not reject me or forsake me,
    O God my Savior. 
10 Though my father and mother forsake me,
    the Lord will receive me.
11 Teach me your way, Lord;
    lead me in a straight path 
    because of my oppressors. 
12 Do not turn me over to the desire of my foes,
    for false witnesses rise up against me,
    breathing out violence.
13 I am still confident of this:
    I will see the goodness of the Lord 
    in the land of the living. 
14 Wait for the Lord;
    be strong and take heart
    and wait for the Lord.

Lamentations 3
22 Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, 
    for his compassions never fail. 
23 They are new every morning;
    great is your faithfulness. 
24 I say to myself, “The Lord is my portion; 
    therefore I will wait for him.”
25 The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him,
    to the one who seeks him; 
26 it is good to wait quietly 
    for the salvation of the Lord. 
27 It is good for a man to bear the yoke
    while he is young.
28 Let him sit alone in silence, 
    for the Lord has laid it on him.
29 Let him bury his face in the dust 
    there may yet be hope. 
30 Let him offer his cheek to one who would strike him, 
    and let him be filled with disgrace.
31 For men are not cast off
    by the Lord forever. 
32 Though he brings grief, he will show compassion,
    so great is his unfailing love. 
33 For he does not willingly bring affliction
    or grief to the children of men.
34 To crush underfoot
    all prisoners in the land,
35 to deny a man his rights
    before the Most High, 
36 to deprive a man of justice—
    would not the Lord see such things?
37 Who can speak and have it happen
    if the Lord has not decreed it? 
38 Is it not from the mouth of the Most High
    that both calamities and good things come? 
39 Why should any living man complain
    when punished for his sins?
40 Let us examine our ways and test them, 
    and let us return to the Lord. 
41 Let us lift up our hearts and our hands
    to God in heaven, and say:
42 “We have sinned and rebelled 
    and you have not forgiven.
43 “You have covered yourself with anger and pursued us;
    you have slain without pity. 
44 You have covered yourself with a cloud 
    so that no prayer can get through. 
45 You have made us scum and refuse
    among the nations.
46 “All our enemies have opened their mouths
    wide against us. 
47 We have suffered terror and pitfalls, 
    ruin and destruction. 
48 Streams of tears flow from my eyes 
    because my people are destroyed.
49 My eyes will flow unceasingly,
    without relief, 
50 until the Lord looks down
    from heaven and sees. 
51 What I see brings grief to my soul
    because of all the women of my city.
52 Those who were my enemies without cause
    hunted me like a bird. 
53 They tried to end my life in a pit 
    and threw stones at me;
54 the waters closed over my head, 
    and I thought I was about to be cut off.
55 I called on your name, O Lord,
    from the depths of the pit. 
56 You heard my plea: “Do not close your ears
    to my cry for relief.”
57 You came near when I called you,
    and you said, “Do not fear.”
58 O Lord, you took up my case; 
    you redeemed my life. 
59 You have seen, O Lord, the wrong done to me. 
    Uphold my cause! 
60 You have seen the depth of their vengeance,
    all their plots against me.

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