Sing His Praises Seven Times A Day

90 Days of Prayer – Day Twenty-Four

Psalm 119:164-165
“Seven times a day I praise you for your righteous laws. Great peace have those who love your law, and nothing can make them stumble”
Sing His Praises Seven Times A Day
Here’s a passage that speaks of David’s love for God’s word. “Seven times a day” is significant. Seven is the number of perfection and many times used to express unceasing action. David is always Praising God for His word. He’s hidden God’s word in his heart for so long that he breaks into spontaneous song at the thought of it! How often has God’s word caused your heart to sing His praises?
David’s Experience
David’s experience in living in the light of God’s word gives him reason to sing. Go through all 176 verses of this Psalm and see how often he mentions the many blessings that God has granted him. “According to Your word” is a repetitive statement throughout the Psalm.
David kept himself clean by living “according to Your word” 119:9 when in danger he prayed “preserve my life according to your word” 119:25. When he was weak and felt he couldn’t go on he prayed “strengthen me according to your word” 119:28, even for the guidance to live right He prays “Direct my footsteps according to your word; let no sin rule over me” 119:133. These are just a few examples, is it any wonder David breaks out in song at the mention of God’s word?
David’s experience of answered prayers prayed according to the word, and learning he could place his hope on God’s promises and never be put to shame, gave him a deep assurance in the integrity of God’s word. He discovered and states it plainly in verse 165 above, that those who love God’s word have great peace! Thinking about that blessing makes me want to sing because he didn’t say those who perfectly obey God’s word, but those who genuinely love it! God even blesses us on the basis of our love for His word!
David discovered that those who have a continual deep abiding love and appreciation for God and His word, are kept from stumbling or even falling. The Scriptures are filled with examples of men and women who walked on solid ground and safely navigated troubled times because their deep love for God’s word kept them on the right road.
A Time-Honored Tradition
Our passage above has been an inspiration to many throughout the centuries. Many were inspired by David’s example to set times for prayer throughout the day. The practice of “praying the hours” usually began at the start of each day. For 10 or 15 minutes at a time; beginning at 6:00am and continuing at three-hour intervals until evening. This has been a tradition for centuries, after the call to morning prayers people would go about their daily routines; stopping for a few minutes to pray again at 9:00am, then 12 noon, 3:00pm, and evening prayer at 6:00pm. Finally sometime before going to bed for the night. The final prayer time, of course, depended on each person’s regular bedtime, so that was not assigned a fixed hour.
Considering David’s experience, this ancient practice is an excellent way to keep God in our thoughts throughout the day. Taking a few minutes several times a day will help us to stay connected with God, leaving us with the sense of His presence with us all day long. We never feel as though we’re far away from Him when we know we’ll be meeting with Him again in a few hours. David most likely did this literally seven times a day. I’ve been doing this for years and it has brought me closer to God, and my life has been the better for it because His word is always on my mind.
Whether you use the Scriptures or written prayers that you can read during your fixed times of prayer, isn’t as important as the blessings that will come to you by just meeting with God for a few minutes several times a day. I often use the Scriptures, reading them aloud or singing them to God for a few minutes. I highly recommend you adopt some form of this time-honored practice, adding it to your daily routine as David did. This practice of praying and praising regularly will help you stay connected, bring you great peace, and keep you from stumbling as David discovered.
So follow David in this practice of Praising God several times a day, thank Him for His Word, Fall in Love with the Scriptures, Be consistent, Be at peace, and Be Encouraged! -JSP

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