Tag: Psalms

A Morning Psalm

Verse: ‘You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek you; I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you …’, (Psalm 63:1).

Moving away from the topic of psalms of repentance I thought it would be fitting to share a morning psalm that I use, and that the Early Church purportedly used in morning worship also. Psalm 63 is an often referred to as ‘Praise from the Wilderness’. I like this title because although a large majority of us live in an urban environment it can often seem to be a spiritual concrete jungle. The lack of spirituality in especially urbanised areas can often feel like we are also in a kind of wilderness. It is a relatively short psalm, therefore easy to pray in the morning without rushing, and is beautiful in the way that the psalmist, and therefore anyone who is praying it, calls out for divine intimacy. It is very clear that the psalmist wants God to come closer to them, and in this way, we too can ask God to come close to us each morning as we get ready for the day to come.

It is important to understand that psalms give us ways in which we can pray to God, be with Him, and understand our own emotions as we pray, which can often mirror the psalmist’s. In the morning it is very beneficial to pray in a joyous manner, praising God for the opportunity to share another day on this planet and with all the loved ones and friends we have around us. For this purpose, Psalm 63 is ideal. Prayer should set the mood for the hours that follow it, a prayer of repentance may bring about feelings of sorrow or a desire to grow closer to God. Similarly, this psalm helps to set a beneficial mood as we start our day. The words ‘your love is better than life’ (Psalm 63:3) and ‘I will be fully satisfied as with the richest of foods’ (Psalm 63:5) help us to centre ourselves and give examples of how we should proceed throughout our day, not only remembering God but also praising Him and loving Him.

This psalm is recommended by many churches and religious organisations within different Christian denominations for use as a morning psalm within a prayer rule or simply on its own. It has also been said that ‘the spirit and soul of the whole Book of Psalms is contracted into this Psalm’ (J.J. Stewart Perowne, The Book of Psalms, p.486) which I think is a rather wonderful mentality we can have as we recite this psalm in the morning hours. We can think of the ways this psalm encapsulated the Book of Psalms as we read and pray it. As we read Psalm 63 and begin our day, no matter the fears or tribulations we may be expecting, we can utter the words of the psalmist and remember that everything can be overcome if we earnestly seek Him, if we thirst for Him, and long for Him.

The Seven Penitential Psalms

Verse: ‘I confess my iniquity; I am troubled by my sin’, (Psalm 38:18).

To continue our explorations into the Book of Psalms I thought it fitting to discuss a practice which I try and incorporate into my daily prayer routine when time will allow, but would definitely recommend the practice during the forty days that make up Lent. During the morning I attempt to pray at least one psalm of repentance after my morning prayer. It helps to centre myself and remind me that, despite my best efforts, I will be subject to many vices such as anger, pride, and perhaps even greed – to name the most common – as I have been in the past.

The Seven Penitential Psalms consist of Psalms 6, 32, 38, 51, 102, 130, and 143. The fact that there are seven of these psalms is useful for creating diversity in repentance. Psalm 51 is perhaps one of the most well know psalms of repentance and was discussed last week but repeating it every day, or multiple times a day, can become tedious and boring. Each of these seven psalms follow a similar pattern of prayer. First the recognition that one has sinned against God and the justice and fairness of punishment. This is then followed by expressing sorrow for the sins committed and the intention to make things right, i.e. by no longer committing sin. Hope is then found in the mercy of God.

Each morning after my usual routine prayers I used to pray Psalm 51 attentively. However, even once a day this can become repetitive and almost automatic in nature, leading to a drowsiness of the mind as we don’t think about the words we are actually reciting, especially since the pressures of the day are often compelling us to rush or worry. To counter this some people may find it easier and more effective to use a different one of the Seven Penitential Psalms each day, assigning them a specific day of the week. I would recommend keeping it simple and going through in ascending order as this is easier to remember and makes logical sense. So, Monday: 6, Tuesday: 32, Wednesday: 38, and so forth.

As well as this, in the Hebrew Bible there is an absolutely fantastic example by a prophet of a prayer of repentance, aptly named, it is known as Daniel’s Prayer of Repentance or simply as Daniel’s Prayer (Daniel 9:4-19). One of the reasons this is an interesting example of praying for intercession and repentance is that Daniel does not just pray for himself, rather he prays for others around him and at several points seeks forgiveness for them after confessing their sins (Daniel 9:15-19). It is easy to pray to God to help us in our own suffering and with our own sin, but we should not forget the needs of those around us either. For this reason, Daniel’s Prayer may be a promising alternative to those who may wish to use an Old Testament prayer in place of a psalm.

Praying Through The Psalms

Verse: ‘For God has willed to make Himself known to us in the mystery of the Psalms’, (Praying with the Psalms, Thomas Merton).

The Psalms, the collection of which is commonly referred to as the Psalter, are widely prayed by Christians and Jews alike throughout the world. These beautiful poems and hymns are considered to be a book of worship given to God’s people to use in their lives. Praying the Psalms helps us as followers of God to draw closer to Him. They, in the words of Thomas Merton, ‘make Himself known to us’; and draw us closer they certainly do. Since the start of Christianity, the Psalms have been used by devotees in their daily prayers. In some periods of time Psalters were so widely possessed that they were even used to help teach children to read.

The Book of Psalms can often be neglected by readers as it is tucked away in the depths of the Hebrew Bible, this is a great shame as many Christian denominations and traditions throughout history have placed a great deal of importance on it for good reason. Within the Cistercian tradition, for example, all 150 psalms are sung or recited every one or two weeks depending on the structure of worship. Within Orthodoxy and Protestantism there is a similar pattern of devotion centred around the Book of Psalms. These practices are not just for the monastic or members of the priesthood; the Book of Psalms was given to us all to use in walking our path with God. A practice which is my personal favourite is to pray all 150 psalms each month (depending on the number of days).

If we split up the Psalms into 30 days then 5 psalms must be recited or sung each day. To do this multiple the date by 5, for example the 13th day of a month would be: 13 x 5 = 65. So, you would end that day’s reading on Psalm 65. Then go back by five psalms which would give you psalms 161-165 so you know where to begin. Already this is much more manageable than it may at first have seemed. With this method the daily psalm readings will always conclude with a number ending in 0 or 5.

I personally split this number into two in my morning prayer and three in my evening/night prayer. For months where there are less than 30 days, such as February with 28, simply stop on that day’s number and go back to Psalm 1 on the 1st March instead. For months with 31 days repeat the psalms for day 30, which would be psalms 146-150. In this manner it is possible for devotees to pray the Psalms twelve times each year! A number which at first seems so impossible and daunting to some is really so simple to put into practice. There is something incredibly beautiful and unifying in praying the same psalms which have been recited by the faithful for thousands of years.