My beautiful Sovereign King, my heart rejoices in You because by Your might and by Your power all will be well with my soul. Even when my appeal for help comes at the final stroke of desperation’s midnight Your swift hand is ready to brush aside the affliction. Only You can forgive my hesitant delay to petition You for effectual action when my own efforts prove futile. How often have I neglected prayer as a first response! Rather I come to You, my Savior, as a last resort as if I must prove myself to You. Nothing could be further from the truth. My wandering heart – will it ever cease to trouble me Lord? When bodily pain or mental anguish assail me, let me first bow the knee before seeking out those who will help me magnify my complaint. Draw me into prayer, Lord Jesus, as inevitably as the waves crash upon the shore each day. Let me not linger in the tumultuous waves out at sea, surrounded by well-meaning friends who are just as powerless as I am to rise above the storm. Hasten me to the mercy seat, to the throne of God, where I can lay my supplications down and anoint Your feet with my tears. There is no shame in what I bring You, Lord. With You I can come just as I am, knowing that You will not turn me away. The point is to come, unconcerned about eloquence, unhindered by pretense and undone by the intimacy of the holy space shared with You. Let me bring You my heart in prayer, vulnerable and exposed, knowing it is safe in Your hands. May my prayer not be cloaked in pride or subtle mockery but drip with honest devotion like honey from the comb. Jesus, You are my refuge and my safe-haven. Thank You for bringing me into the shore of Your love when the waves of adversity have overtaken me. Under the Word of God in Psalm 42:1-2, 7-8 and the authority of Christ Jesus, I bow in prayer.

As the deer pants for the water brooks,
    so my soul pants after You, God.
My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.
    When shall I come and appear before God?
Deep calls to deep at the noise of Your waterfalls.
    All Your waves and Your billows have swept over me.
Yahweh will command His loving kindness in the daytime.
    In the night His song shall be with me:
    a prayer to the God of my life.
Psalm 42:1-2, 7-8, WEB