Day 694: Psalm 116- Call On The Lord!

I love the Lord, because he has heard
    my voice and my pleas for mercy.
2 Because he inclined his ear to me,
    therefore I will call on him as long as I live.
3 The snares of death encompassed me;
    the pangs of Sheol laid hold on me;
    I suffered distress and anguish.
4 Then I called on the name of the Lord:
    “O Lord, I pray, deliver my soul!”
5 Gracious is the Lord, and righteous;
    our God is merciful.
6 The Lord preserves the simple;
    when I was brought low, he saved me.
7 Return, O my soul, to your rest;
    for the Lord has dealt bountifully with you.
8 For you have delivered my soul from death,
    my eyes from tears,
    my feet from stumbling;
9 I will walk before the Lord
    in the land of the living.
10 I believed, even when I spoke:
    “I am greatly afflicted”;
11 I said in my alarm,
    “All mankind are liars.”
 
12 What shall I render to the Lord
    for all his benefits to me?
13 I will lift up the cup of salvation
    and call on the name of the Lord,
14 I will pay my vows to the Lord
    in the presence of all his people.
15 Precious in the sight of the Lord
    is the death of his saints.
16 O Lord, I am your servant;
    I am your servant, the son of your maidservant.
    You have loosed my bonds.
17 I will offer to you the sacrifice of thanksgiving
    and call on the name of the Lord.
18 I will pay my vows to the Lord
    in the presence of all his people,
19 in the courts of the house of the Lord,
    in your midst, O Jerusalem.
Praise the Lord!
 
Meditation
Gushing gratitude grows our conviction to call on the name of the Lord. God hears the cries of His children! Therefore, we must call to the Lord for grace, justice, mercy, salvation, and strength.
 
Love for the Lord bursts forth from hearts that have been heard by the Lord. God hears our pleas for mercy and inclines His ears to us (1-2). Sacrifice, praise, and thanksgiving rise from the worship of people whose hearts have hoped for the Lord to hear (17-19). In celebration we lift up the cup of salvation and continue to call on the name of the Lord (12-14).
 
God’s character holds our hope for His hearing. God is gracious, righteous, and merciful so He will preserve those with childlike faith who look to Him for rest (5-7). God has been faithful to deliver in the land of the living (8-9) and His faithfulness even preserves us in death (15). The character of God is the hook on which we hang our hope for Him to hear.
 
God’s grace invites us to have confidence in calling to Him. We call to the Lord for salvation (Romans 10:13) and we call to the Lord because of salvation (Zechariah 3:9). God is faithful. God has been faithful to hear our call so we respond to His faithfulness with more fervent calling to Him for help and hope.
 
Gratitude for God’s faithfulness will grow. We will sing of our salvation and dance because of our deliverance. God hears us when we call to Him!
 
Richly Dwelling
-Do you believe God hears you when you call to Him? Why or why not?
 
-How does God’s character and past faithfulness give confidence to call to Him?
 
-Practice gratitude for times God has heard you call to Him. Take a moment to remember and reflect on how God has heard you, given you hope, and helped you in times of trouble.
 
Key Verses
1 I love the Lord, because he has heard my voice and my pleas for mercy.