It can be easy for our prayer life to devolve into a series of requests: “God, can you help me with X...? Can you bring healing to Y...?” And on and on. This is not necessarily a bad thing. Jesus invited us, “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you” (Matt. 7:7). The problem comes when we start envisioning our relationship with God as a customer to vendor or a supervisor to underling.
Psalm 123 reminds us of our proper standing before God. We do not look down on God or view Him as an equal. Instead, the Psalmist proclaims, “I lift up my eyes to you, to you who sit enthroned in heaven” (v. 1). God is enthroned over the universe. Our relationship with Him is of servant to master (v. 2). Being a child of God means waiting upon Him, attending His word and obeying. We are at His service.
Being God’s servant has benefits. We can expect Him to hear when we call. The Psalmist had been ridiculed and mocked by scoffers (v. 4). Because the Psalmist was God’s servant, this was a problem for God as well. Would God allow His servant to be treated poorly? It could be that God had His own purpose for this situation. But this psalm models for us that it is appropriate to ask God to intervene when we face a difficult situation.
Psalm 124 continues this theme of calling to God for deliverance from an enemy. Only God could save Israel. They were delivered because they serve the “Maker of heaven and earth” (v. 8).
>> These psalms remind us that God is the sovereign, and we are His servants. We are dependent upon Him for all things. But He also cares deeply for us. Whatever you may be facing today, you can call on God and know that He cares.
Pray with Us
Father, Your Son became the suffering servant so that we could be servants to You. Give us desires that align with Your will. Humble and shape us into ever-increasing obedience and Christ-like submission.
BY Ryan Cook
Dr. Ryan Cook has taught at Moody Bible Institute since 2012. He earned his bachelor of arts in Bible and Theology from Moody and his master of arts in Old Testament from Grand Rapids Theological Seminary. He has worked in Christian education and served as a pastor in Michigan for seven years. During his time as a professor at Moody, he earned his doctorate from Asbury Theological Seminary. He now lives with his wife, Ashley, and their three children in the Chicagoland area.