This Same Purpose

Learning to live in the Story

Learning to live in the Story

Psalm 16:1, A Prayer of Preservation

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Preserve me, O God, for in you I put my trust. Ps. 16:1

Preserve me, with a shield around me, like a forcefield, a dome of protection through which all the fiery darts of evil cannot penetrate.

Preserve me, like salt on meat that would spoil otherwise. Keep me holy, useful, savory—a sweet-smelling savor before your throne. Keep me consistent, help me to last.

Preserve me, sustain me, support me, like the pillars of the Parthenon, keep me strong. Infuse me with iron and living water simultaneously.

I will not trust in my own wisdom and abilities. I will not fall forward or backward on the strategy of self-preservation.

I will not trust in the wisdom of the world. I will forfeit, flee, the path that seems right and choose the path that you say is right.

I will not live within any other narrative but the one you have written for me, for in you, and in you alone, I put my trust.

That narrative with my name on it, penned by your steady hand, requires I walk in a faith I don’t always have. Where doubt approaches unwelcome, where fear threatens my resolve, where impatience redirects my attention, where alternative and counterfeit options and benefits capture my affection—I am sorry.

I ask for measureless grace, to live the impossible every day. For when I stand empty and broken, when I’ve returned from a detour neither you nor I ever meant for me to take, it is enough for you that I have of my own accord come back, come back home. This, I know, makes you smile.

So I stand here with a dome, a forcefield around me. Thanks for that.

This prayer is the first in a series I’ll write and publish on TSP. This series comes from moments of meditating on each verse in Psalm 16 and engaging with that scripture personally through prayer. My hope is that these written prayers would be a starting point and that you can continue praying the selected scripture in a personal way. I chose Psalm 16 because of the vast range of human experiences it addresses and the hope it inspires in those who read it and pray it. The sweetest moments I’ve had in prayer are the moments when I decided to stop ‘trying’ and instead be raw and honest with the King. Studying scripture is a vital part of the Christian life, as are moments like these where scripture studies us—where we hold it up as a mirror and pour out before the Lord what’s really in our hearts. May this be a safe space for that.

All my love,

—M

Mattanah DeWitt