Glory to God in the Quiet - Your Nightly Prayer - December 25th
Glory to God in the Quiet
Your Nightly Prayer
Lindsey Callahan
TONIGHT’S SCRIPTURE
“Be exalted, O God, above the heavens! Let your glory be over all the earth!” Psalm 57:5
“A prayer of worship for Christmas, praising God who came near in humanity and glory.”
There is just something about seeing exclamation points in scripture that gets me excited. Every time I come across a verse that ends with an exclamation point, I seem to pay special attention. It’s as if the punctuation makes me ponder how the author first spoke the words thousands of years ago.
The ESV version of today’s passage includes two exclamation points, meaning I’m paying extra attention and wondering what David’s inflection may have been.
Tonight’s verse was written by David when he was hiding in a cave from King Saul. This scripture is nestled right in the middle of a chapter where David cried out to God in a near-death experience and declared his trust in God’s character.
Even though David had been anointed as the future king of Israel, he was hiding in a cave because Saul wanted to kill him. His circumstances certainly did not match the promise of a royal position.
Maybe this Christmas night, you are looking at the circumstances before you, thinking how they don’t match what you envisioned or prayed for. Friend, I have been there as well. Christmas after Christmas would pass, and still no baby. Maybe you’re waiting on a wayward family member to return to The Shepherd, or your marriage looks no different than it did last year - another Christmas, same struggle. God has still not answered your prayer, and the enemy keeps chasing you into dark caves.
Just like David, we too can find hope in the dark caves in our lives! In Psalm 57:1, David doesn’t say the cave is his refuge, but God is!
“For in you my soul takes refuge; in the shadow of your wings I will take refuge.”
This Christmas, let’s remember that Jesus didn’t only come near to humanity when He was born in a manger and for the 33 years thereafter. He is still Emmanuel - God with us! We don’t just spend eternity with Him one day, but like David, we can call out to Him to be present with us in our dark cave circumstances right now!
When David wrote tonight’s verse, “Be exalted, O God, above the heavens! Let your glory be over all the earth!” the future king was still hiding in that dark cave. Even though he was far from sitting on a royal throne, he recognized that God was worthy of a declaration of praise in heaven and on earth right now!
Even though our circumstances may still feel dark, before we turn out the light on Christmas night, like David did in Psalm 57, we can profess our trust in a God who “will send out his steadfast love and his faithfulness.” (Psalm 57:3b) That declaration is certainly exclamation point worthy!
YOUR NIGHTLY PRAYER
Father, thank you for coming near Your creation when Your Son left His royal position and was born in a lowly manger. We praise You that moments of suffering and difficulty do not appear as if they are glorious, but when we seek refuge in the shadow of Your wings, You are in fact glorified by our humble dependence on You. Help me find hope in Your light in the dark caves of my life. In Jesus’ name, amen.
THREE THINGS TO MEDITATE UPON
1. What is the circumstance that is most painful and that I pray looks different next Christmas?
2. Ask yourself, in this painful situation, am I taking refuge in the shadow of His wings, or am I just hiding my heartache in a dark cave?
3. Have I prayed and declared that God be exalted in this situation in heaven and on earth? Consider if you’ve only prayed for your circumstances to change so that your life would feel more comfortable or that God would be glorified through them.
Reflect on tonight’s prayer and share how God met you there. Join the Your Nightly Prayer discussion on the Crosswalk Forum.
Photo Credit: ©Pexels/Denis Gvozdov
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