Day 2: Be still
Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for Him; do not fret when people succeed in their ways, when they carry out their wicked schemes. (Psalm 37:7).
Sovereign God, You have clearly spoken— Be still and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth. (Psalm 46:10).
Yet, we struggle so with stillness, with patience. We chafe against injustice and wicked schemes, forgetting that You are the ultimate standard and measure of justice— that Your eyes reach every height, plumb every depth. We forget that [our] times are in Your hand (Psalm 31:15.
Lord, even as we pray against evil and injustice, we give You our thoughts and our emotions. You have instructed us to Refrain from anger and turn from wrath; do not fret—it leads only to evil (Psalm 37:8). We cannot fight evil by being drawn into evil ourselves. Guard our hearts against wrath, against any kind of evil.
Replace thoughts of wrath with earnest prayer. Prayer that You foil the plans of evil. Prayer that You would disable the wicked from doing further mischief. Prayer that You would work mightily on behalf of the needy and the oppressed, remembering Your promise that God will never forget the needy; the hope of the afflicted will never perish (Psalm 9:18).
Help us to wait for Your timing and Your plan, trusting that The Lord works out everything to its proper end— even the wicked for a day of disaster (Proverbs 16:4)
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