Day 21: 31 Days of Prayer

July 21, 2010

Morning

Psalm 16:5-6 (NIV) Lord, you have assigned me my portion and my cup; you have made my lot secure. ⁶ The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; surely I have a delightful inheritance.

What is life? David offers a concrete picture of life in these verses. First, he defines life as a portion. The Hebrew word is “menat.” The root indicates “counting.” David considers what has been counted out to him. The second word is cup, coming from the word, kos. The idea here is “holding together” as a cup does with a drink. David considers what holds his life together. The third word is lot, the Hebrew word, “goral.” This word looks to the future, reflecting the idea that “the future is determined by casting lots.” David is asking, “Is my future a product of chance or is it in the hands of a God?” Fourth, is the term boundary lines, the word, “hebel.” This word signifies a “rope used for surveying property.” David is taking note of the boundary lines of his life—place, time, position, gifts, talents, etc. Acts 17:26-27 (NIV) (God) determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live. ²⁷ God did this so that men would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us. The final word is inheritance, the Hebrew word “nahalat.” The meaning is more “take possession of” than “inherit by last will and testament.” David ponders, “What do I possess that cannot be lost?”

Now use these words with the rest of Scripture to assess your own life. What has been counted out to you? What holds your life together? What is your future? What are your boundaries? What do you actually possess? Do you conclude as David did that life was secure, pleasant, delightful? You will if you begin where David began—with the LORD. David had made the LORD, the beginning and the ending of his life. God had counted out David’s blessings, held his life together, secured his future, determined his life boundaries, and was David’s inheritance. Choose the LORD as fully, deeply, and singularly as David did, then life will be secure, pleasant, delightful. Choose Him now, by trusting Jesus Christ to forgive your sin and bring you into a relationship with God. Revelation 21:6 (NIV) I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To him who is thirsty I will give to drink without cost from the spring of the water of life.

Evening

Paul had lost everything—his freedom, his ministry, his family, his riches. Only the executioner’s sword awaited. Yet Paul exclaimed, 2 Timothy 4:7-8 (NIV) I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. ⁸ Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day. Paul died with hope, because like David the LORD was his portion. Ephesians 1:18-19 (NIV) I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, ¹⁹and his incomparably great power for us who believe. Make this your prayer too.