July 7
Verse of the Day for July 7
[A Psalm of David, when he was in the wilderness of Judah.] O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee: my soul thirsteth for thee, my flesh longeth for thee in a dry and thirsty land, where no water is;Psalm 63:1 KJV
The Key of Devotion · Day 7 of 31
Reflection · 4 min read
Prayer In the Work at Hand
The heading of this psalm places David in the wilderness of Judah. When he writes about a dry and thirsty land, where no water is, he is describing the ground under his feet.
[A Psalm of David, when he was in the wilderness of Judah.] O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee: my soul thirsteth for thee, my flesh longeth for thee in a dry and thirsty land, where no water is;
He begins with possession: O God, thou art my God. Before he asks for anything, he says whose he is. Then early will I seek thee, the first hours of the day given before the heat sets in.
What is striking is where he looks for God. Not back at the temple, though he remembers it. He has seen thee in the sanctuary, and he wants to see the same power out here, in the dust, where the work of surviving is.
Many of us keep God for the sanctuary hours. Sunday is for seeing him, and Monday is for the job. David will not accept that split. The God of the sanctuary is the God of the desert, and he wants to see him in both.
So the prayer of the work at hand is prayed in the workshop, at the till, in the long afternoon on the farm. Before the first task, say whose you are. Then look for him in the dry place.
The sanctuary showed him who God is.The desert is where he needed it.
Seek him early in the work, before the heat of the day.
The ground you are standing on is a place God can be seen.
Carry this today
Where in your work today do you most need to see what you have seen in worship?
Pray
Read Psalm 63:1–2
1[A Psalm of David, when he was in the wilderness of Judah.] O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee: my soul thirsteth for thee, my flesh longeth for thee in a dry and thirsty land, where no water is; 2To see thy power and thy glory, so as I have seen thee in the sanctuary.
Keep praying
Reflection by Collins Asein, from the daily devotionals in the PrayerKey app. Bible text: King James Version.