Daily Devotions
Psalms
Psalm 88:2a "Let my prayer come before You..."
Day 299 – Psalm 88
“Let my prayer come before You…” Psalm 88:2a
A GREAT CHALLENGE
Heman was a Levite. He was also a trained singer. His ministry was to pray for Israel. He was to do this via the ministry in song. That must have been quite a great challenge to balance talent and ministry.
1. On the one hand
a) He must pray (form).
b) He must pray most sincerely (heart).
2. On the other hand
a) He must minister in song.
b) He must sing well for this was his special God-given talent.
CONTEMPLATING PRAYER
Heman contemplated God even as he sang. He was a very personal God. He was the God of his salvation! Now he contemplated prayer.
“Let my prayer come before You;
Incline Your ear to my cry.”
Psalm 88:2
1. “Let my prayer come before You”
a) The spirit of prayer must be one of great humility.
b) Prayer must never be taken for granted.
c) It was right to formally request that his prayer would be received favourably.
2. “Incline Your ear to my cry”
a) Pleading before God was a correct approach.
b) Nothing must be taken for granted; certainly not prayer!
A MOVING EXPERIENCE
Heman must pour in everything he possessed in his ministry that involved singing and prayer. To sing professionally would defeat the purpose of prayer. To simply pray without using his talent to sing would defeat the plan to have him minister in song. If he could combine both things, hearing him sing would have been a very moving experience. Would God also be “moved with compassion” as Heman sings out his prayer to Him? The short answer is “Yes!”