Each Breath I Take I Will Speak God's PraiseSample

Singing in the night

“By day the Lord commands his steadfast love,
and at night his song is with me,
a prayer to the God of my life.” (Psalm 42:8)

We usually sing when we are happy. A song of praise bubbles up when you think of God's grace in your life. A happy tune crosses your lips when the sun is shining when you leave for work. But Psalm 42 has a very different tone. The poet laments, “My soul is cast down within me”. He feels like God forgets him, he is mocked by other people, and he is sad. Yet he continues to sing and pray!

In difficult moments, you may sing a song of lament. Or rather choose a song about God's goodness that can help you look beyond your own problems. This is how the writer of Psalm 42 addresses himself: “Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God”!

Paul and Silas are a good example here. They were unjustly imprisoned, closely guarded in the inner cell. In the middle of the night (literally and figuratively) they started to pray and sing songs of praise.

When you are struggling, what do you do? Do you quietly crawl away in a corner? Do you talk about your struggles with others? Do you also talk about it with the Lord God? What do you think would happen if you started singing?