Scripture Focus: 2 Samuel 22.18-19
18 He rescued me from my powerful enemy,
from my foes, who were too strong for me.
19 They confronted me in the day of my disaster,
but the Lord was my support.
Reflection: Our Deliverer — Guided Prayer
By John Tillman
Delivered from death at the hands of a giant, David credited not Abishai, the warrior who came to his rescue, but God himself.
We can, in the day of our disaster, rely on God. Our success depends on God, not our own strength or the intervention of an ally.
David’s song of deliverance is also included in scripture as Psalm 18. Let us join in a prayer inspired by this song. Let us thank God for the Abishais whom he sends into our lives and for his strength that saves us.
Our Deliverer:
We live among the violent.
And you bid us live in peace.
We live among our enemies
And you bid us love them.
Deliver us, Lord.
Be our rock and our refuge.
Be our stronghold and savior.
We live in distress
Like a bird in a snare
Like a leaf in a whirlpool
Like a seed in a sandstorm
Our hearts beat like desperate wings
Our courage sinks, soaks, and spirals down
Carried by chaos, our hopes are rootless
Part the heavens and stride the Earth, Lord.
Come to our rescue in steps that shake the ground.
Stretch out your hand and snap the snare in two
Draw your drowning, doubting disciples from the seas of foam
Hush the haboob’s swirling sand with a word and settle us in good soil, sipping streams of living water.
Our foes are stronger than we are.
Our sins are stronger than we are.
They confront us, but you support us.
They drag us down, but you lift us up.
Who is like the Lord who strengthens the weak?
Who is like the Lord who humbles the strong?
Who is like our God who enobles the shamed?
Who is like our God who shames the proud?
Let us bloom faithfully for the one who is faithful to us.
Make us blameless and pure through the work of your blameless one.
Set us free to run in the path of your commands
We run upon the heights like deer
We soar on your wings
Through our praise, our deliverer calls to all the Earth, “Come to me and be delivered. Come to me and be free.”
Music: “My Deliverer” — Rich Mullins
Divine Hours Prayer: The Request for Presence
Let all who seek you rejoice and be glad in you; let those who love your salvation say forever, “Great is the Lord!” — Psalm 70.4
– From The Divine Hours: Prayers for Summertime by Phyllis Tickle.
Today’s Readings
2 Samuel 22 (Listen 5:22)
Psalms 13-14 (Listen 1:43)
Read more about David’s First and Last Giants
Regardless of our age or experience, giants don’t go down easily…Who do you call when giants threaten? Who might God use to save you when you are weakened?
https://theparkforum.org/843-acres/davids-first-and-last-giants
Read more about What David Longed For
In so many ways, what David longed for after death, we have access to now. We have many advantages over David.
