Watch and Pray
"My voice shalt thou hear in the morning, O LORD; in the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up."
(Psalm 5:3)
He hears me. Jehovah, the self-existent, the self-sufficient God of this universe. This is the God who is attentive to my cry. Not merely in times of trouble, not merely in times of resolution, but continually. He hears every utterance, every groaning, every tearful plea, every thanksgiving, every praise, every utterance of rejoicing, every cry, every word, every moment of silence spent before Him.
Here, the Psalmist utters more than a prayer, but moreover, a resolution. A resolution, that without fail, his daily affections will first be made unto God. In order that he might let the Divine occupy the first place in his waking thoughts. "That which first occupies the mind on awaking is most likely to keep
possession of the heart all the day through." (Clarke) It is that continual and effectual decision to put God first in our lives. To put away the Old Man and to suffer him dead, in order that Christ might take His rightful place in our hearts. The daily decision to empty thyself unto the Holy Ghost, that He might fill you up.
Will I direct my prayer unto thee - In the Hebrew this means to set in
order, to place in a
row, to put in order, to arrange. Much like placing the wood upon the altar or to arrange the showbread on the table before God in the Holy Temple. Here, the prayers of the Psalmist are likened unto the morning sacrifice. With great care and diligence, every detail of the morning sacrifice was arranged and performed with great regard before the Lord, Jehovah, the self-existent, all-sufficient God. These sacrifices would be made with serious and solemn
attention to the duties involved, as it was an act of worship to a Holy
God. Being of this same mind, we should never offer our prayer is haste, with rash words. We should not negligently speak, as if we speak to mere man. Instead, our prayers should be "engage the profound thought of the
soul"(Barnes). It is that idea that we sacrifice time and energy, with great piety, in order that our time spent before the Holy of Holies is honoring to the Lord, not in vain. The sacrificing of sleep, of self-service, of time dedicated to self, in order that we might enter into the very presence of God and be heard.
And will look up- In the Hebrew this phrase means to look about, to view from a distance. It is in reference to a tower which has a wide prospect, one in which a Watchman looks about. It is the
idea that, just as the Watchmen were stationed on a tower to watch, narrowly and carefully for what was coming in the distance, being friend or foe, we too should watch
for the answers to our prayers. For the Divine will to intermingle with our feeble pleas. Watch and pray (Matthew 26:41), as Jesus urged. Watch, because He will answer. Although not stated explicitly in the Hebrew, one can devise from this statement, and I will look up, that the Psalmist is confident in God answering His prayers. It is never a matter of if He will answer, rather when and how. Therefore, let us sit with confidence before the Lord. Let us leave the sacrifice at the altar with no intention of taking it back with self-will or fear. Rather, "Wait patiently for the Lord. Be brave and courageous. Yes, wait patiently for the Lord." (Psalm 27:14)
