How the Psalmist Prays (Part 2)

(Psalm 119:169-176) -"169 Let my cry come before You, O Lord; give me understanding according to Your word. 170 Let my supplication come before You; deliver me according to Your word. 171 Let my lips utter praise, for you teach me Your statutes. 172 Let my tongue sing of Your word, for all Your commandments are righteousness. 173 Let Your hand be ready to help me, for I have chosen Your precepts. 174 I long for Your salvation, O Lord, and Your law is my delight. 175 Let my soul live that it may praise You, and let Your ordinances help me. 176 I have gone astray like a lost sheep; seek Your servant, for I do not forget Your commandments."
The Psalmist does not stop at deliverance here, but goes on to ask the Lord to enable praise! (Read vs 171) The Psalmist doesn't want to learn or be given any understanding that doesn't result in his mouth ("lips") speaking ("utter") praise!! What type of praise you might ask? Singing!!!! (Read vs 172) To my knowledge, singing is the most common expression of praise in all the Scripture. So how much do we sing? Notice then the pattern: God makes promises to His people; they believe the promises by claiming them in prayer; God hears His people exalting and believing what He commanded; God delivers them by answering according to His promises (word); His people sing praises to His name! Praise is the end goal of all God promises to us!! (Read vs. 173) In this verse, the Psalmist prays that God would continue to remain faithful to His word by His readiness to honor and answer those who exalt it, remembering its end. What he means by "chosen Your precepts" is that he has chosen to believe the Lord's word, as opposed to anyone else's. In this, each time the Lord delivers or saves him, the word of the Lord is exalted, and the Psalmist is made more confident that he has made a good choice. (Read vs. 174) Since he delights in the law of the Lord, he delights to see the Lord honor His word in saving him. (Read vs 175) The Psalmist doesn't want the praise to cease, so he begs the Lord to allow his soul to live. (Read vs 176) The Psalmist ends the longest chapter in the Bible by realizing his own weaknesses and the necessity of the Lord's initiation and keeping. May our prayers then be saturated in the promises of God, rejoicing in the One who delights to satisfy our hearts in His exaltation!