They Will Call Him Blessed

For he will deliver the needy who cry out, the afflicted who have no one to help.

He will take pity on the weak and the needy and save the needy from death.

He will rescue them from oppression and violence, for precious is their blood in his sight.

Long may he live! May gold from Sheba be given him. May people ever pray for him and bless him all day long.

May grain abound throughout the land; on the tops of the hills may it sway. May the crops flourish like Lebanon and thrive like the grass of the field.

May his name endure forever; may it continue as long as the sun.

Then all nations will be blessed through him, and they will call him blessed.

Praise be to the Lord God, the God of Israel, who alone does marvelous deeds.

Praise be to his glorious name forever; may the whole earth be filled with his glory.

Amen and Amen.

This concludes the prayers of David son of Jesse.

Psalm 72:12-20

Is it really unusual for things to grow on top of mountains? If grain on top of mountains is so unusual, when what is Solomon talking about? That God’s power can produce results in even the most unpromising soil?

May you think of yourself as a little person, with very little to bring to the kingdom. Take courage: God can produce an abundant harvest through you. This is one of the ironies of faith: God uses the insignificant to accomplish the great. Not many of us are wise or noble: most of us are anonymous and far from extraordinary. Yet all of us can be used. And contrary to what we might think, it is because of our weakness that we can be used by God.

It is possible to be too big or proud for God to use, but we can never be too little. When we are at our weakest we can be at our strongest. By God’s great power, we can do all that He has called us to do.

To experience God’s power we must first admit that we are weak.

Our Daily Bread – July 14, 2014