Our Worship
We worship a God who has raised and nurtured us for Himself. What arises in you as you consider this marvelous verse? Allow praise to flow naturally from being so loved.
Psalm 80:17 The Voice (VOICE)
Let Your protective hand rest on the one who is at Your right hand,
the child of man whom You have raised and nurtured for Yourself.
Our Longings
- What are you bringing to this prayerful time with God today (worries, hopes, fears, etc.)?
- What are you most longing for today as you dwell in the reality of a God who nurtures you tenderly and has raised you for Himself?
Allow yourself whatever time is necessary here in prayer to get in touch with these longings.
Scripture
Psalm 80:16-18 The Voice (VOICE)
16 Your enemies have chopped it down and burned it with fire;
may they be destroyed by the sight of Your rebuke.
17 Let Your protective hand rest on the one who is at Your right hand,
the child of man whom You have raised and nurtured for Yourself.
18 Then we will not turn away from You.
Bring us back to life! And we will call out for You!
Our Meditation
Today we continue with yesterday’s theme of waiting on God to act even when we seemingly have no energy left to cry out to Him. Where does this resilience to wait, even when we are bereft of energy, come from?
We hate waiting!
We hate waiting even more when we’ve tasted growth, when we’ve had success. We can get used to meeting our goals, to learning what it’s like to set a plan in motion and have it work out. We get used to the amazing fruit produced by the new lands we’ve conquered.
But then suddenly when things stop working like they once were, we don’t know what to do.
Usually, we throw all our energy into doing the things that won us this new land – but those plans and efforts were made for another land and another time and they no longer work for where we are now.
Psalm 80 chronicles this experience and is a perfect place of consideration for us during this Advent season of waiting. Let’s look at a few of the verses that help us understand the Psalmist’s great lament in verse 16 where he cries to God about what has been destroyed. Think through areas of your life where great growth and victory seems to be turning into loss.
We find God taking His people and planting them, like a vine, into a new land (Psalm 80:8 The Voice).
You took us like a grapevine dug from the soil of Egypt;
You forced out the nations and transplanted it in Your land.
This new vine grew into magnificence (Psalm 80:9-11 The Voice).
9 You groomed the ground around it,
planted it so it would root deep into the earth, and it covered all the land.
10 As it grew, the mountains were blanketed by its shadow;
the mighty cedars were covered by its branches.
11 The plant extended its branches to the Mediterranean Sea,
and spread its shoots all the way to the Euphrates River.
But then, often like in our own lives, this great vine began to be nourishment for everyone else, depleting its fruit, destroying its life (Psalm 80:12-13 The Voice).
How many times have your great successes turned into toiling responsibilities?
12 God, why have You pulled down the wall that protected it
so that everyone who wanders by can pick its sweet grapes?
13?The wild boar of the forest eats it all,
and the creatures of the field feast upon it.
Had God forgotten His people (Psalm 80:16 The Voice)? It seems the Psalmist thinks so.
16 Your enemies have chopped it down and burned it with fire;
may they be destroyed by the sight of Your rebuke.
And it often feels that way for us as well. We start off well, sinking our roots deep into Him (verse 9). We begin to bear fruit, to love others well, to provide shade and sustenance. But often, we wear out and the first thing we do is question God.
Where have you gone, Lord?
It is at this moment where we must join the Psalmist in remembering our roots are in Him. There can be no soil erosion when our lives are planted in Him. Though people may pluck from our lives the fruit they need, though wild animals may come and devour all our plans unexpectedly, we are still planted in Him.
Our resilience to wait this Advent season comes from the deep rootedness of our lives in Him.
18 Then we will not turn away from You.
Bring us back to life! And we will call out for You! (Psalm 80:18 The Voice)
In a world that views take-charge-action as courage, we must be brave enough to wait.
This Advent season, we wait for the One who has planted us in Him.
- Where have you experienced great growth only to watch it wither or be destroyed?
- Is God inviting you to trust Him to bring new growth in your life this Advent season? How?
- What does waiting on God look like for you this Advent season?
Intercession
Using Psalm 80:12 as a guide, pray for those who you feel take more from you than they give. Seek God’s perspective on this as you pray.
A Closing Prayer
Lord God,
Thank you for planting us deep in Your love. There are times when it feels as though I have nothing left to give. There are times when I feel all my efforts have been in vain and that you have grown silent to me. Lord, revive me. Remind me that you are the one who plants, nourishes and grows. Help me to wait, secure on the vine, for You this Advent season.
Amen.
This Evening and Tomorrow Morning
- This evening, continue again to rest in whatever God gave you during your time of worship yesterday with Psalm 80:3. Return to this often over this Advent season.
- When you awaken tomorrow morning for prayer, consider reading through Psalm 80 in its entirety as a prayer to God with similar themes from your life in mind as you pray.
Scriptures from Our Advent Series
Texts for First Advent Week: Isaiah 64:1-9; 1 Corinthians 1:3-9; Mark 13:24-37; Psalm 80:1-7, 16-18
