Show Me the Way I Should Go

Psalm 143:8-10

“Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in you. Show me the way I should go, for to you I lift up my soul. Rescue me from my enemies, O Lord, for I hide myself in You. Teach me to do your will, for you are my God; may your good Spirit lead me on level ground.”

I memorized this scripture in April of 2013 and I’ve been using it ever since as a centering prayer. Most mornings it is included as one of my first offerings to God – as a reminder to myself of my part in our relationship.

Every request in this prayer Psalm is followed by a promise of what we are doing in the relationship. Please consider them with me as we go through them one by one…

First we make a request of God – Remind me of your unfailing LOVE - and then we make a promise – I have already put my trust in you.

Next we request – Show me the way I should go – and we promise – I have already lifted my soul to you, Lord.

The next request we make – Rescue me from my enemies – and then we promise – I have already hidden myself in You, Lord, I’m well tucked in under your wings.

And when we ask “teach me to do your will”, we imply that we will listen and learn, because we already claim and embrace God as our personal God! God, our Center, our #1, our Guide and Comforter.

And in that last line, we pray for God’s Good Spirit – The Holy Spirit – to teach and lead us on the level ground of Truth and LOVE in God’s will.

So, as we begin our day today, or as we are in the middle of the fray, or maybe we are winding down for dinner time, or prepping for bedtime, when you are saying your prayers to God, let’s remember this Psalm and this prayer.

And so to end today’s podcast, won’t you pray with me now…

“Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in you. Show me the way I should go, for to you I lift up my soul. And rescue me from my enemies, O Lord, for I hide myself in You. Teach me to do your will, for you are my God; may your good Spirit lead me on level ground.” AMEN

This devotion was written and read by Bernice Howard.

Grace for All is a daily devotional podcast produced by the members of the congregation of First United Methodist Church in Maryville, Tennessee. With these devotionals, we want to remind listeners on a daily basis of the love and grace that God extends to all human beings, no matter their location, status, or condition in life.

If you would like to respond to these devotionals in any way, we would enjoy hearing from you. Our email address is: podcasts@1stchurch.org.

First United Methodist Church is a lively, spirit-filled congregation whose goal is to spread the message of love and grace into our community and throughout the world. We are located on the web at https://1stchurch.org/.