Psalm 146 (NRSV)
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Verse 1Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord, O my soul!
Verse 2I will praise the Lord as long as I live; I will sing praises to my God all my life long.
Verse 3Do not put your trust in princes, in mortals, in whom there is no help.
Verse 4When their breath departs, they return to the earth; on that very day their plans perish.
Verse 5Happy are those whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord their God,
Verse 6who made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them; who keeps faith forever;
Verse 7who executes justice for the oppressed; who gives food to the hungry. The Lord sets the prisoners free;
Verse 8the Lord opens the eyes of the blind. The Lord lifts up those who are bowed down; the Lord loves the righteous.
Verse 9The Lord watches over the strangers; he upholds the orphan and the widow, but the way of the wicked he brings to ruin.
Verse 10The Lord will reign forever, your God, O Zion, for all generations. Praise the Lord!
Devotion
To do: another day, another list. Item one: I will praise the Lord as long as I live. Remembering God puts those additional items in a new light. They are done with a difference, connected now to all that God has done for me. Now I see those obligations as opportunities to give justice, to feed the hungry, to free the captive, to open blind eyes, to care for strangers. All things God has done for me. Now done through me? I will sing praise to my God while I have my being.
Prayer
Lord, fill my day with praise for you. Let me see in each moment your love and grace. Give me the wisdom to trust in you and not in fads and fancies. O Lord, reign forever, and in this generation. Amen.