Modern Psalms: Taking a Page from Creation’s Praise Book

“The heavens proclaim the glory of God. The skies display his craftsmanship. Day after day they continue to speak; night after night they make him known. They speak without a sound or word; their voice is never heard. Yet their message has gone throughout the earth, and their words to all the world.” (Psalm 19:1-4, NLT)

Hey, Pops,

Today, I lay no petitions, no requests, and no pleas at your feet. For just a moment, I only want to sit in awe of you.

Constantly, you beckon me to come close to your heart; you give me permission to intimately know you, to dive deeper into who you are. And constantly, I am distracted by the desires of my own heart. How many times have I passed up the opportunity to just be with you by filling up the time and space with my selfishness and my “needs?” How many times have I missed the opportunity to get to know more of you, because I wanted you to hear more of me?

Today, Pops, all I want is to be your creation. Nature doesn’t strive or frantically petition. Nature only praises you. Today, I want to display your craftsmanship and proclaim your glory. I want to praise you in the unique frequency you created me to have. I want to lay aside all the things I think I have to juggle, all the ways I think will make my worship more pleasing to you, and just give you thanks in the voice and the disposition you gave me.

You leave me in awe, Lord. When I really think about how you laid everything out, I am stunned.  The simple truth is, you can’t be boiled down to zeroes and ones. You can’t be unlocked by any equation or exact science, and yet, you even made a way for every idea man has ever had to try and quantify you. You gave us the ability to dream up theories and thought-processes that try to understand the wonders that you so effortlessly breathed into existence.

All I want is you and your presence. I want to keep it about me as much as possible. And while I’m there, I embrace any transformation of heart, mind, and spirit that makes me more like you. Trees don’t fight change; they slip from green to kaleidoscope autumn in gorgeous surrender. The ocean tides swell and retreat and constantly construct different coastlines and borders. The moon phases. Creatures curtsy through mind-boggling metamorphosis. Stars obediently stand vigil and silently speak to your mighty wonder, awaiting your command to burn out their torches.

I pray that I could be so close to you that that kind of humility, that kind of natural surrender to you and your will would be so welcome in my heart. I pray that the weakness of my flesh would never stand in defiance of your will, whether intentional or unintentional. Help me to let go of my pride and my selfish nature so that I can better hear and obey you. Show me how to love simply because I have known and observed the way you love. I want to truly understand the value of being still before you and drawing from your strength by simply being rooted there.

Lord, just as you whisper your gentle commands of transformation to nature, I fully give you permission to transfigure my soul into something that glorifies you better. I invite your Holy Spirit to make a chrysalis around my caterpillar heart and make me into whatever you need it to be.

You love to remind me that you’re not done working on me yet. You love to remind me that every opportunity to be with you is an opportunity to uncover more about you and an invitation to be more like you. Thank you for moments like these, where the thought of your creation reveals more of your passion for me. Thank you for hiding pieces of your heart in the every day, in your carefully crafted world, and in the people around me.

As you continue to work me out, help me to trust you. Keep calling me away to marvel at you, even on the days where change feels like work. Continue to remind me that no matter the cost, you are always creating something more beautiful.

Let my transformation be worship. Let my metamorphosis be praise. Let my new form be a testimony.

“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing to you, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.” (Psalm 19:14, NLT)