“To You, O Lord, I lift up my soul.” (Ps. 25:1, NKJV)
You can intentionally lift your inner atmosphere up into the presence of God. His manifest presence is always on a higher plane than our troubled emotions. Through the power of His Holy Spirit, He enables us to reach up to where He is. When we lift up our soul into the heavenly places, His presence washes over us, and all the cares of this world melt away.
David is the author of this beautiful Psalm. The book of 1 Samuel tells us that, even in life’s most distressing moments, this man after God’s heart knew how to “strengthen himself in the Lord his God” (1 Sam. 30:6). As we read through Psalm 25, we can find some of the steps he learned to take in order to lift up his soul into the Lord’s presence
- He declared his trust in God: “O my God, I trust in You…” (v. 2a). When something distressing is happening to us, trusting the Lord is a moment-by-moment choice. Something powerful happens when we verbally, vocally proclaim our decision to trust.
- He exalted God’s character: “Good and upright is the Lord…” (v. 8a). Praising Him allows us to purposefully pull our focus off of our circumstance and train it on the One who loves us with a perfect love. At the same time, magnifying the goodness of the Lord strengthens our faith.
- He fixed the eyes of his heart on God: “My eyes are ever toward the Lord, for He shall pluck my feet out of the net” (v. 15). Looking at God is the way we connect our faith to His power. It’s like an electric circuit is completed when make contact with Him with our gaze. His mighty current of energy is released to flow on our behalf in that very moment.
- He passionately expressed his appeal to God: “Turn Yourself to me, and have mercy on me, for I am desolate and afflicted” (v. 16). The tone of his prayer throughout the psalm demonstrate that he fully expected that God would answer him. At the same time, he was brutally honest in pouring out to the Lord his raw emotions. His heart posture for petitioning Heaven was a poignant combination of profound anguish and earnest confidence.
You and I can lift our souls up to our Maker too. As we focus on Jesus and begin to exalt Him, our faith will make contact with the limitless resources of Heaven. Once we have lifted our heart up into the manifest presence of God in this way, our petitions flow right from our heart to His. We pray full of faith and expectation because we are seeing Him with the eyes of our heart. We are beholding in His eyes the never-ending power and love that He is eagerly releasing on our behalf.
Praying this way is an exercise that trains your spirit and makes you ever stronger in Him. The more you learn to lift up your soul like this, the more hell will begin to tremble every time you even glance in the direction of your prayer closet!
****************************************************
What are some strategies that help you fix your gaze on Jesus in spite of whatever battle you may be facing today?
****************************************************
Listen to the podcast version of this devo here!
Feeding On Jesus 
Jennifer, as always, you write with spirit and conviction. I enjoyed spending time with all of Psalm 25. David humbles himself before God, and we follow in his prayerful footsteps. Verses 16-18 will begin my prayers this morning.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Praise the Lord! Brings a joyful smile to my face. Thank you, truly Richard, for your encouragement 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Jennifer, I give thanks as never before, that our faithful and loving God has brought me this far so soon. From years of disappointment and frustration to ABSOLUTE victory in separating that which takes me down to His lifting me in the moment issues in life. Yes, accessing this promise of the Spirit needs to be never ending. I pray diligently that those souls I see around me struggling with doubt, fear and anxiety would begin and continue seeking God’s absolute remedy – trusting Him at the deepest level. Amen Len W
LikeLiked by 1 person
That is absolutely priceless, Len. I praise Him with you, and echo that prayer!!
LikeLike
So true! Yesterday a friend was joining me for a time of singing/worshiping, and just as she came I noticed that all my pictures and videos (about 1300 of them) had disappeared from my phone. (And no, I hadn’t used the Cloud.
) I had that sinking feeling that threatened to ruin an otherwise heavenly time, but almost immediately I realized that this was probably what the enemy intended. So, my friend and I did what we had planned – sang the Lord’s praises, prayed for and with each other, and just basked in His presence. I pretty much forgot about the pictures. How can we expect to face the big battles when we let a little technology upset us and sidetrack us from what is truly important?
LikeLiked by 2 people
What a wonderful victory, Ann! I rejoice with you for the insight and empowering He gave you to walk in the amazing victory He has given you! Thank you, Lord!!
LikeLiked by 1 person
You are right, it is all about focus in the right direction!
LikeLiked by 2 people
Thanks, Cindi! May He empower us more and more in our quest to do so! 😀 ❤
LikeLike
And all God’s children said Amen!
LikeLiked by 1 person
🙂 🙂
LikeLike
I must spend time with God EVERY day, or I quickly lose focus on him. I wish I had begun doing this as a young person.
LikeLiked by 2 people
It really is so easy to lose focus, isn’t it? I long for that point on the timeline when I have grown into uninterrupted communion with Him!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I have come to believe it is absolutely critical to begin the day with a set time of quiet conversation with my Maker. There are times when I do set prayers, and times when I just sit in silence, invite His presence, and bask in it. I can then start the day’s chores from a place of strength that would have been impossible to reach otherwise.
Glad to be back on your site after a couple days away. God bless you and yours– Mike
LikeLiked by 1 person
You have expressed what is nearest and dearest to my heart! Those moments with Him, whatever shape they take, are by far my favorite part of life. And you are right, the strength that we need and can find no where else flows from them. Rich blessings to you too, my friend!
LikeLiked by 1 person
thank you again. This entry and all who comment indeed lift my soul again and keep my focus on what is important in this life. Glitches in technology can be a distraction. Stop. Look. Listen. Focus on what really matters. Blessings, Peace and Grace!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes and amen! Thank you, Lord, for encouraging and blessing my sister Faye always! ❤ ❤
LikeLike
“Divine Love is the absence of separation.” I heard this the other day from a friend and I have thought and thought on it. It is so easy to separate ourselves. But it is truly not who we are. Staying focused and saturated in His love is the full blown plan, right? It takes a life time to figure this out…why???…. Learning and Loving Jennifer
LikeLike
That is a beautiful quote! Yes and amen! A wonderful, poetic description of the union with God that He brings us into and longs for us to consciously dwell in permanently!
LikeLike
And I’m with you, Jackie, still learning, every day, a little more! Longing to get to the place of uninterrupted focus on Him and His beauty!
LikeLike