Psalm 71

Psalm 71

¹ In you, Lord, I have taken refuge;
    let me never be put to shame.

I have tried Lord to stay in your embrace,

to never bring shame to your name² In your righteousness, rescue me and deliver me;
    turn your ear to me and save me.

Lord hear me when I pray, rescue me from myself

deliver me from negative thoughts

³ Be my rock of refuge,
    to which I can always go;
give the command to save me,
    for you are my rock and my fortress.

I know you should be my rock and place of safety

please save me from this, become my fortress, 

my strength.

⁴ Deliver me, my God, from the hand of the wicked,
    from the grasp of those who are evil and cruel.

Keep me from those that wish me harm,

who do not understand who I am in you

⁵ For you have been my hope, Sovereign Lord,
    my confidence since my youth.

For I have hoped in you since my younger days
⁶ From birth I have relied on you;
    you brought me forth from my mother’s womb.
    I will ever praise you.

I have relied on you since 1989, being born again

after being born of my mother.

Thank you Lord.⁷ I have become a sign to many;
    you are my strong refuge.

Many people know that you are my strength

That you are my hope.⁸ My mouth is filled with your praise,
    declaring your splendor all day long.

I talk about you often and how you have helped me

⁹ Do not cast me away when I am old;
    do not forsake me when my strength is gone.
¹⁰ For my enemies speak against me;
    those who wait to kill me conspire together.
¹¹ They say, “God has forsaken him;
    pursue him and seize him,
    for no one will rescue him.”
¹² Do not be far from me, my God;
    come quickly, God, to help me.
¹³ May my accusers perish in shame;
    may those who want to harm me
    be covered with scorn and disgrace.

When it is my time to leave this world

be my strength and my guide.

And when people try to take YOU out of me,

and say you are the reason I have gone,

Come quickly to help me, come quickly to reveal

the hope that I held on to in you. 

¹⁴ As for me, I will always have hope;
    I will praise you more and more.

As for me, I try to have hope each day,

As my hope grows so does my praise

¹⁵ My mouth will tell of your righteous deeds,
    of your saving acts all day long—
    though I know not how to relate them all.

My voice, my actions, my life will tell of your love

and your acts of provision even tho the words

will never have the ability to fully understood¹⁶ I will come and proclaim your mighty acts, Sovereign Lord;
    I will proclaim your righteous deeds, yours alone.

When I go to others I will talk of your love, your acts of

salvation and strength in my life, yours alone¹⁷ Since my youth, God, you have taught me,
    and to this day I declare your marvelous deeds.

I can see all you have been teaching me, even in my 

childhood when I didn't realize you were so available¹⁸ Even when I am old and gray,
    do not forsake me, my God,
till I declare your power to the next generation,
    your mighty acts to all who are to come.

Lord help me make the time I have here count.

Help me to tell of all you have done to my children,

to their children and to all I meet.

¹⁹ Your righteousness, God, reaches to the heavens,
    you who have done great things.
    Who is like you, God?

No one can be like you God, loving and giving hope

doing great things for all under the heavens²⁰ Though you have made me see troubles,
    many and bitter,
    you will restore my life again;
from the depths of the earth
    you will again bring me up.
²¹ You will increase my honor
    and comfort me once more.

Tho I have lived thru many trials and troubles,

You will restore me and make me whole.

You will bring me to you

And increase my honor among others

And comfort me forevermore.

²² I will praise you with the harp
    for your faithfulness, my God;
I will sing praise to you with the lyre,
    Holy One of Israel.

Because of your faithfulness and love,

because of your might and power,

I will sing praises to you.²³ My lips will shout for joy
    when I sing praise to you—
    I whom you have delivered.

I will stand up and shout for joy

when I praise you

Because you HAVE delivered me.²⁴ My tongue will tell of your righteous acts
    all day long,
for those who wanted to harm me
    have been put to shame and confusion.

My words will always tell of your righteousness

so that those that have no understanding of the YOU in me

will be ashamed and confused at the hope I have in you.

Father, at this moment I am struggling to trust.

At this moment hope seems so far away.

When hope was all I KNEW was available

I found it easy to find refuge in you.

As time continues on I am ashamed that my hope

has become fleeting.  I feel I can't hope for healing because 

I feel that it was given and then taken away.  I am the confused one.

Lord help me to keep fighting my way back to the place

Where in you I feel safe and secure.

Help my focus to be on you, and all that is good.

Because when it is all said and done, the only thing my life must 

accomplish is the passing on of my belief and love for you to my children and my friends.  Without you, without finding you in 1989...

Thank you for saving me.  That is one thing that is certain in my life.

I am saved, receiving that free gift from you because of the grace and mercy you have shown to me.

Lord allow hope to once again be the highlight of my relationship with you.  Help me to find the quietness I need to reflect on the reasons I have to trust you.

Lord, please heal me.  Please allow me to be a living miracle.  Please wrap up these fears and doubts and take them from me, replacing them with your truth, not the devils lies.  For you are love and light, peace and hope, quiet and trust.  For this I will worship you always.

Amen