Prayer for Deliverance

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Scripture: Psalm 10:12-18 (NIV)

12 Arise, Lord! Lift up your hand, O God.

Do not forget the helpless.

13 Why does the wicked man revile God?

Why does he say to himself,

“He won’t call me to account”?

14 But you, God, see the trouble of the afflicted;

you consider their grief and take it in hand.

The victims commit themselves to you;

you are the helper of the fatherless.

15 Break the arm of the wicked man;

call the evildoer to account for his wickedness

that would not otherwise be found out.

16 The Lord is King for ever and ever;

the nations will perish from his land.

17 You, Lord, hear the desire of the afflicted;

you encourage them, and you listen to their cry,

18 defending the fatherless and the oppressed,

so that mere earthly mortals

will never again strike terror.

Devotion:

            In this psalm, David first describes the wicked person. (vs. 1-11) Then he proceeds to offer a prayer on behalf of the righteous who wait for the Lord to deliver them. (vs. 12-18) This psalm calls the wicked out for their contempt for God and His people. These evil ones may think that God does not see what they are doing (if he even exists) and cares nothing for His lowly ones. In the first eleven verses the psalmist raises his complaint against God. In the remainder of the psalm, he simply petitions his God for help.

 

            It is instructive to examine David’s prayer in verses twelve through eighteen. In this prayer David gets specific about what he is praying for. He calls God to “lift up your hand.” Simply calling God to act against the wrongdoing that David sees all around him. He tells God about the taunts of the wicked and calls God to action against these evil ones. David reminds himself that God sees and hears all of words, and deeds of His enemies.

 

            How does this psalm speak to us today? It serves as a reminder that although evil is running wild all over the earth, God is still on the throne in heaven. God sees all the wickedness, evil, and oppression in the world today and will in His timing will call the evil actors to account for the evil they have done. We can take heart then. God knows about everything that is wrong with our society today and knows how to bring perfect justice to bear on the situation.

 

Prayer:

            Lord, we thank you that you are a mighty God. You alone can judge the deeds of man justly. You reward those who diligently seek you and your ways. Help us to not lose hope as we see the desperate trouble in our nation and around the world. Make us desperate for you to come and rescue us with your great power. We rejoice in the knowledge that you are all powerful and all knowing and will one day put all that is wrong with this world, right again. Amen.

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