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Psalm 71:22-24 I will also praise thee with the psaltery, even thy truth, O my God; unto thee will I sing with the harp, O thou Holy One of Israel. my lips shall greatly rejoice when I sing unto thee, and my soul, which thou hast redeemed. My tongue also shall talk of thy righteousness all the day long, for they are confounded, for they are brought unto shame, that seek my hurt.

After reflecting on a long life of blessing, the psalm writer responds to what God has done for him and through him. He takes up the psaltery to praise God and the harp to sing unto the Lord. He uses his lips to rejoice and sing He talks with his tongue about the goodness of God all day long.

The Lord has redeemed his soul, and his whole self (soul) rejoices and sings because of God’s great salvation. He praises God for defeating his enemies that try to hurt him. He has the Lord on his mind all day long, every day, and speaks of God’s goodness at every opportunity. It is in this sense of constant awareness of God’s presence that we live our daily lives and enjoy Him forever.

Psalm 71:14-15 But I will hope continually, and wil yet praise thee more and more. My mouth shall shew forth thy righteousness and thy salvation all the day; for I know not the numbers thereof.

My response to the Lord’s never-ending love and daily mercies is to hope continually and praise Him more and more. And, while living a life with hope and praise always in my heart and on my lips, I will tell everyone what He has done. My very demeanor, my words and actions, show forth His righteousness and salvation every day as long as I live.

Just as I never lose hope, so I will never stop the praise that is a constant attitude of my heart and life. Hope and praise is the way in which faith in the Gospel acknowledges, believes,, receives, and enjoys the Life that God gives on account of Christ. In a life of praise, the heart is always poised toward God and ready at any time to express praise to God. In this way the heart is light, free, and happy. Praise confirms the hope and produces more and more praise, and the cycle continues.

Psalm 71:8 Let my mouth be filled with thy praise and with thy honour all the day.

We respond to God’s Love, Life, and Salvation continuously all day long every day (24/7) with praise and glory. When we fill our mouth with praise and glory, we are truly blessed and there is no space for other words and thoughts. Praising God fills us with His life and love. Praising God is a way for us to consciously receive the love of God by faith. And we feel so much better in our soul when His Spirit touches it.

And the Good News is that we can respond this way any time, all day long, for God is always good and His mercy endures forever. Though our life may not be going the way we want, God is always good and always worthy of our praise. This is true no matter what we feel. Therefore, we can praise Him all day long, and when we focus on Him our mouth is filled with praise, and not with complaining, blaming, or negative words. Thoughts of God and His glorious goodness fills the heart with love, joy, and peace, and a deep knowing that He is in charge of our life for our good.

Psalm 71:3-4 Be thou my strong habitation, whereunto I may continually resort: thou hast given commandment to save me, for thou art my rock and my fortress. Deliver me, O my God, out of the hand of the wicked, out of the hand of the unrighteous and cruel man.

In his distress and threats from enemies, David turns to God and prays for salvation and deliverance from the wicked enemies that want to destroy him. He believes the Lord is doing just that as he prays. He trusts the Lord to speak a word give forth a command to save. “Deliver us from evil.”

Because of Jesus God is for us. He is our Protector, Savior, and Deliverer. I will not fear what man can do unto me. The Lord is on my side, Who can be against us?

God alone is my rock and my fortress. Jesus, by His blood, has brought us into God’s strong habitation. We are with Him, in His presence, in His safe place, in His fortress, in His strong habitation. He lives in us, He is with us always wherever we are, and we live in His presence always and everywhere.

Our response to the troubles and threats that surround us is to go in. We enter into His strong habitation by faith every time we hear and remember the Gospel.

Psalm 71:1-2 In thee, O Lord, do I put my trust: let me never be put to confusion. Deliver me in thy righteousness and cause me to escape; incline thine ear unto me, and save me.

As the Psalm writer was aging he responded by putting his trust in the Lord. He knew the Lord would not let him down, be disappointed, confused, or ashamed. He could count on the Lord to hear him in his need, to deliver him from enemies, and to save him from trouble. And so he prayed the prayer of faith, believing God’s faithful love.

So also, we, in our need and trouble, put our trust in the Lord to hear our prayer. We look to Him alone, and nothing else, in prayer in Jesus’ name. Because of Christ our Father promises to hear, deliver, and save. Therefore, I can put my trust in Him, for He has in love given me everything I need for peace, comfort, and joy.

Psalm 70:1, 5 Make haste, O God, to deliver me; make haste to help me, O Lord….But I am poor and needy: make haste unto me, O God; thou art my help and my deliverer, O Lord, make no tarrying.

There are times when we feel the world and our enemies are against us, when we feel empty and broken. Then we respond by begging God to come to our aid, to be our help and deliverer. I need God’s help and I need it now. We don’t ask for help, wishing He would come, but we ask in faith knowing that He will come at just the right time, and will not delay.

The OT believers waited for what seemed like a long time for the promised Messiah to come and deliver. And “at the right time” the Son of God came and died for us. It may seem like a long time for God to answer our prayers, But the Lord is not late. He makes haste and comes and delivers at the right time. “Make haste” does not so much mean quickly according to my schedule, but it means at just the right time according to God’s timetable. I believe the Lord will be on time, “in the fullness of time.” He has done it, does it now, and will do it again.

Psalm 69:29-30 But I am poor and sorrowful: let my salvation, O God, set me up on high. I will praise the name of God with a song, and will magnify him with thanksgiving.

David confesses that he is a poor, miserable sinner in a poor and sorrowful condition. He desperately needs God. Therefore, he responds by praising God with a song and magnifying with thanksgiving .

Whatever situation we find ourselves in, we can still praise the Lord, for He is always good. There is no variableness or turning with Him. When we praise Him with song we feel better and our spirit is lifted. By faith we speak the truth to ourself that He is great and good to us, regardless of how we are feeling at the moment. We carry a song in our heart all the time.

We magnify Him, not to make God bigger than He is, but to strengthen our own faith and perception of God in our minds. We make Him bigger in our minds to stretch our imagination to come closer to the true greatness of God.

We pray to comprehend how high, deep, long, and wide is the love of God toward us. So we thank Him. Every time we thank God He is magnified in our minds and our faith is stronger.

Psalm 69:16 Hear me, O Lord, for thy lovingkindness is good: turn unto me according to the multitude of thy tender mercies.

David prays to be delivered from his enemies and be lifted up out of the miry pit. He trusts that the Lord will hear him and turn to him in his trouble. He knows the Lord will hear him because His lovingkindness is good and because of His mercies toward us.

He prays to and believes in the Lord and that He hears because He knows God and His character. His lovingkindness is good. Lovingkindness is a good translation of chested, steadfast love, the kind of goodness you can count on. And His tender mercies are manifold and ever present..

Jesus Christ is the tangible expression of the lovingkindness and tender mercies of God, and He fully reveals to us what God thinks of us. He is God in the flesh, and He is Love.

Psalm 69:13 But as for me, my prayer is unto thee, O Lord, in an acceptable time: O God, in the multitude of thy mercy hear me, in the truth of thy salvation.

When times get tough and the world seems to be against me, I will remain steadfast in the faith and turn to the Lord in prayer. I believe that He hears me, sees my trouble, and answers. He hears my prayer because of His mercy, shown to us in the person and work of His Son, Jesus Christ, who is the tangible mercy of God. He hears my prayer because of His salvation, graced to me in Christ. The truth is, He loves, cares, saves, and hears.

John 1:14: “And the word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld his glory, glory as of the only Son from the father, full of grace and truth.” Jesus is the mercy and truth of God, who came to us in human flesh so we can touch Him, believe Him, and pray to the Father in Jesus’ name.

Other people may trust in horses and chariots and other things, but as for me, I will pray to the Lord in an acceptable time, in time of need. He is my only source and hope for wisdom, strength, and answers. I turn to God in prayer for immediate and constant needs. It is always an acceptable time.

Psalm 69:1-3 Save me, O God, for the waters are come in unto my soul. I sink in deep mire, where there is no standing: I am come into deep waters, where the floods overflow me. I am weary of my crying: my throat is dried: mine eyes fail while I wait for my God.

Sometimes we get overwhelmed with a flood of deep waters, which threaten our feelings, thoughts, and worries. We respond by asking God to save us and bring us above the flood. He does so in our Baptism where the Old Man drowns and dies and sin and guilt is judged.

During an overwhelming time we grow weary of crying, both crying from depression and crying out to the Lord. We get tired of weeping over our miseries and crying for relief. Jesus says, “Come unto me, ye weary, and I will give you rest [Matthew 11:28].” When we cry, we know whom to cry to, the Lord of all good, rest, and comfort.

Then in confident faith we wait for God. We know He cares, hears, and answers, but we continue trusting while we wait. At the right time the Lord will come and lift our spirits and lift us above the flood. We cry and wait in patient faith.