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Illustration for Psalm 138: Praise With All My Heart

Psalm 138

Praise With All My Heart

GratitudeCourage

David praises God with his whole heart because God heard his prayer and made him bold and strong inside. Even the kings of the earth will praise God when they hear His words. Though God is high and mighty, He cares for the humble.

  1. 1I will praise You, O LORD, with all my heart; before the gods I will sing Your praise.
  2. 2I will bow down toward Your holy temple and will praise Your name for Your loving devotion and Your truth. You have exalted above all things Your name and Your word.
  3. 3When I called, You answered me; You made me bold and stouthearted.
  4. 4All the kings of the earth will praise You, O LORD, when they hear the words of Your mouth.
  5. 5And they will sing of the ways of the LORD, for the glory of the LORD is great.
  6. 6Though the LORD is on high, He looks favorably on the lowly, but He sees the proud from afar.
  7. 7Though I walk in the midst of trouble, You preserve my life; You stretch out Your hand against the anger of my foes, and Your right hand saves me.
  8. 8The LORD will fulfill His purpose for me; Your loving devotion, O LORD, endures forever—do not abandon the works of Your hands.

What it means

David says God answered him by making him bold and strong on the inside. Notice that: the answer was not that the problem vanished, but that he was changed to be able to face it. God often builds courage in us rather than removing the thing we fear.

A little prayer

God, thank You for hearing me and for making me braver on the inside. Even though You are so high above everything, You care about ordinary people like me. Amen.

Memory verse

“The LORD will fulfill His purpose for me; Your loving devotion, O LORD, endures forever—do not abandon the works of Your hands.”

Psalm 138:8 (BSB)

It promises completion, which is exactly what you doubt in the middle of something.

Talk about it

Questions with no single right answer — for a family table or a Sunday-school circle.

  1. David says God made him bold and strong inside. What is inside strength?
  2. The psalm says God pays attention to the humble but keeps His distance from the proud. Why that way round?
  3. It says God will finish what He started in us. What have you started and not finished?
  4. When did someone's words make you braver?

Try this

Finish one thing

Find something half-done in the house — a puzzle, a drawing, a jar to be emptied. Finish it together. Read verse 8 when it is done.

Scripture from the Berean Standard Bible (BSB)