In you, O Lord, do I take refuge; … For you, O Lord, are my hope, … Do not cast me off in the time of old age; forsake me not when my strength is spent. … My mouth will tell of your righteous acts, … You who have done great things, O God, who is like you? … my tongue will talk of your righteous help all the day long (Psalm 71:1a, 5a, 9, 15a, 19cd, 24a).

The morning psalm today in the Bible reading guide I use, The St. James Daily Devotional Guide for the Christian Year, published by The Fellowship of St. James, was Psalm 71. I certainly needed it. What did John Newton tell us? God’s amazing grace had taken him through dangers, toils, and snares. Indeed. Jesus called it tribulation (John 16:33). James warned us about what our sin would do to us and our relationships (see the whole epistle, but I am thinking of James 4:1-12). Even Paul spoke frankly about a thorn in the flesh (see 2 Cor. 12:1-10).

Psalm 71, which I believe to be by David, was a good one for me today. It is twenty-four verses of the psalmist’s relationship with God. He knows Him as God, Lord, and Lord: the One with power, authority and covenant faithfulness. He pleads for help and acknowledges God’s help—in the past, present, and future. He acknowledges God’s care of him from the womb and even to the tomb (vv. 6, 9, 18, and 20). David pauses to see beyond the current crisis to God’s care for him throughout his days and the days of His people. He is confident that God will keep helping and saving and comforting. And he is persistent in telling God that as God continues to deliver, so he will continue to remember, ponder, and speak of God’s acts, helps, and the hope he has in Him.

Do you need a mentor today to guide you? Do you need to see beyond today’s urgencies? I did.

PRAYER: Thank you, Lord, for the psalmists. They help us remember. They help us meditate. They help us pray. Your word, O Lord, is indeed my life and my light. Amen.