Nate Holdridge

View Original

A Prayer To Know God's Love (Psalm 52:1)

"Why do you boast of evil, O mighty man? The steadfast love of God endures all the day." (Psalm 52:1).

O, God! Your love endures, more than my sin, weakness, and limitations. You have never run out of gas. Everywhere I have gone, anything I have thought, every day of my life, Your love has endured.

You have run alongside me, aiding me in this journey. You have run behind me, cleaning up my sins. You have run before me, preparing the way for me. Your love, your limitless love, is yet to be exhausted.

From the beginning of the day to the time I sleep, You love me. During my holiest moments, sacred and separated unto You for Your glory, to my fleshiest failings, obstinate and dangerous, You have loved me. Your love has never failed. It has remained steadfast.

And You have advocated for me through every second of life. Each beat of my heart is a witness to how You fight for me. You prayed for Peter, that he wouldn't fail, though Satan wanted to sift him (Luke 22:31-32). It seems you've done the same for me.

Your love is stronger than any substance of the earth. Stronger than steel, more immoveable than iron, Your love is unbreakable. It cannot be melted or altered. Its is unshakeable. The most enduring structures of human engineering are flimsy in comparison to Your love. All-day long, it endures.

How is it so strong, O Lord, when I am so weak? My attitudes and sanctification and holiness ascend and descend like the ocean tides. My faithfulness is like the morning dew. But Your love is not. Not even for a second is it moved.

Your love is rooted in You, and You do not change. There is no shadow of change in you (James 1:17). You are the trustworthy, infinite, Holy One. Your love is anchored deep in the sea of Your nature. Your love is built upon the unshakeable foundation of who You are. Your love is one with You to the degree it is said, "God is love" (1 John 1:5).

Bolster my understanding of this radical love. My performance -- and You know how I crave fruitfulness for Your kingdom -- does not cause Your love to fluctuate. My holiness -- and You know how I want to be sanctified into the image of Christ -- does not make You love me more or less. My love for You is not the measure of Your love for me.

I do not understand this love, O God. All-day long I swim in the world. Its love is temporary and fleeting. It is a love based on me, and I move. I am often not what I want to be, and the world's love ebbs with my failure. Then praise comes when my performance is esteemed. This is the love I understand. Do well, and you are loved. Do poorly, and you are unloved.

But Your love is steadfast. It cannot move.

O God, thank you for this love. Rooted in You, Your love must become my constant companion. I must swim in it, allowing it to carry me through life. Let it override the love of man, that fickle thing which cannot bring me to glory. Your love never fails. Your love is high.

O Lord, thank You for Your love. At the cross, I see it. I am humbled by it. Cover me with Your love. Renew me by Your love. Let my whole heart become new by the power of Your love. I barely know it. Let me know it, O Lord. Amen.