READ Psalm 70. 1 Hasten, O God, to save me; come quickly, LORD, to help me. 2 May those who want to take my life be put to shame and confusion; may all who desire my ruin be turned back in disgrace. 3 May those who say to me, “Aha! Aha!” turn back because of their shame. 4 But may all who seek you rejoice and be glad in you; may those who love your saving help always say, “The Lord is great!” 5 But as for me, I am poor and needy; come quickly to me, O God. You are my help and my deliverer; LORD, do not delay.
THE SECRET. There is a place in prayer for a godly urgency. Jesus himself approves of “audacity” (Luke 11:8), an almost shameless relentlessness in petitioning God. Yet in the midst of even this kind of prayer, David uses his need to stimulate praise (verse 4). Circumstances can drive us to seek God, yet even before they change (verse 5) we can say, “The Lord is great!” when we find that God himself and his salvation (verse 4) are enough. As Elisabeth Elliot said, “The secret is Christ in me, not me in a different set of circumstances.”61
Prayer: Lord, how poorly I pray! Either I pray vaguely and halfheartedly or I pray heatedly, accusingly telling you exactly what you have to do. Teach me to pray with discipline and passion and yet also contentment with your love and will. Then through my prayers you will do much good in the world and in my heart. Amen.