Prayer Tip--Teach Us to Number Our Days
Daily Scripture
Psalm 90:1-6, 10, 12, 14 (NIV)
Lord, you have been our dwelling place
throughout all generations.
Before the mountains were born
or you brought forth the whole world,
from everlasting to everlasting you are God.
You turn people back to dust,
saying, “Return to dust, you mortals.”
A thousand years in your sight
are like a day that has just gone by,
or like a watch in the night.
Yet you sweep people away in the sleep of death—
they are like the new grass of the morning:
In the morning it springs up new,
but by evening it is dry and withered…
Our days may come to seventy years,
or eighty, if our strength endures;
yet the best of them are but trouble and sorrow,
for they quickly pass, and we fly away…
Teach us to number our days,
that we may gain a heart of wisdom.
Satisfy us in the morning with your unfailing love,
that we may sing for joy and be glad all our days.
Daily Reflection & Prayer
The poetry and beautiful images of today’s Scripture reading are perfect for a prayer practice that helps us focus on what God’s Word might say to us right here and right now.
Lectio Divina has been described as “reading in the quest for God,” or as a way to pray with Scripture. If you look, you will find many different versions and instructions for this practice. In all, the focus is on paying attention to what draws us to a passage of Scripture and then meditating on it, letting God speak to us. If you like to write things down, grab some paper and a pen, or your journal (or write in the margins of your Bible). Here is one easy way to get started. Allow yourself some significant time and don’t rush.
- Prepare yourself. Sit quietly for a few minutes. Ask God to speak to you through this passage of Scripture. Make a commitment to read and listen with your whole heart, not anticipating an outcome or trying to make the passage conform to what you hope it will say, and being open to anything and everything God has for you.
- Read the passage out loud, slowly.
- Meditate quietly. What word or phrase or idea catches your attention? Reflect on it for about five minutes.
- Read the passage out loud again.
- Meditate, asking yourself, How does this passage touch my life? How might it connect with the world I live in, my community, my family, my church?
- Read the passage out loud for the third and final time.
- Meditate. Ask yourself, What does God want me to do or be? Is God asking me to take a certain action, or to hear certain words of comfort or instruction?
- PRAY. Talk to God about what you have noticed, what you heard and felt as you sat with and meditated on this passage. Did you find it difficult, or confusing? Tell God about your frustration or confusion. Rest in the answer. Don’t try to force anything. Just sit in God’s presence and feel God’s peace and love.
Prayer
Lord God who loves us and wants us to hear your voice, help me focus on your Word today and listen and ponder with my whole heart. Help me to accept and act on what I hear. Thank you for being present with me in all I do. Amen.
GPS Insights
Jennifer Creagar
This week's prayer tip is by Jennifer Creagar, the Community Assistance Coordination Director in Resurrection's Congregational Care Ministry. She is married and loves spending time with her family, and she enjoys writing and photography.
