1 I waited patiently for the Lord; and He inclined to me, and heard my cry. 2 He also brought me up out of a horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my steps. 3 He has put a new song in my mouth— Praise to our God; many will see it and fear, and will trust in the Lord. Psalm 40:1-3 NKJV
What a testimony of praise David sings in the passage above! While we don’t know the exact lengths of all he had been through, or all he was facing, we can gather a few details from the chapter. The situations he referred to:
– Required waiting. (v. 1)
– Seemed horrible. (v. 2)
– Surrounded him with trouble. (v. 12)
– Involved sin. (v. 12)
– Included heartbreak. (v. 12)
– Invoked enemies. (v. 14-15)
What a mess! Notice, however, what He says the Lord did for him. The Lord brought him through, established his steps, and put a new song of praise in His heart.
No matter your situation, whether you’ve had a relationship with God for a long time or you are just starting out, God can do a new work.
As we begin this 40 Days of Prayer, be reminded- our God can make all things new! No matter your situation, whether you’ve had a relationship with God for a long time or you are just starting out, God can do a new work.
In Ezekiel 11:19, God promises that if His people will get rid of all of their other idols, He will “give them an undivided heart and put a new spirit in them; [He] will remove from them their heart of stone and give them a heart of flesh” (NIV). James 4:8 says, “Draw near to God and He will draw near to you” (NKJV).
God can begin a new work in you today! He can put a new song in your mouth and use your praise like David’s, where “many will see it and fear, and will trust in the Lord.”
APPLICATION
– Ask the Lord to do a new work in your life and to put a new song in your mouth. Confess areas in which your heart may be “hardened” to Him and ask Him to replace those areas with a heart that is open and receptive to the new work He wants to do.
– Pray that this 40 Days of Prayer will be the start of a new work in the life of our church. Pray that the Lord will move mightily in your brothers and sisters in the Liberty family as they, too, go on this journey forward. Pray that many people would commit to praying together in a Connect Group over the next four weeks. Pray that God would raise up leaders to lead these groups and others to open their homes for the groups to meet.
– Pray that many from Hampton Roads and around the world will trust in the Lord because of our new song of praise.