Truly I am your servant, Lord

 

Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his faithful servants.
Truly I am your servant, Lord, I serve you just as my mother did; you have freed me from my chains.
I will sacrifice a thank offering to you and call on the name of the Lord.
I will fulfil my vows to the Lord in the presence of all his people,
in the courts of the house of the Lord - in your midst, Jerusalem. Praise the Lord (Psalm 116:15-19)

Psalm 116 is a powerful expression of gratitude for God’s faithfulness to us. If you have time, please do read the whole of it. The psalm starts with a declaration of love for the Lord, after the Lord has responded to the psalmist’s cry. It later continues with another image that I love, where God turns (‘inclines’) his ear to listen to the author. We’re all familiar with the idea that gestures and body language can express more of our true feeling than the words we speak. In Psalm 116 we witness a God who turns to us in order to hear our requests, even where these may be quiet, hesitant, confused or unclear. Sometimes we can feel insignificant and overlooked. But in God we have our significance. He doesn’t just brush us off, but actually turns to us. Our late Queen, Elizabeth II, publicly testified to how God had upheld her and guided her and listened to her requests for help.

Verse 15 states that the death of his faithful servants is precious to God. Why would this be? Perhaps help in understanding this can be found in John 14:6, when Jesus tells his disciples, “I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” Jesus is saying
clearly that through belief in him, his death and resurrection, our way to the Father has been assured. The deaths of faithful servants are precious to God because they have been ransomed by the blood of Jesus Christ. What higher price could have been paid?

Through publicly professing her faith and reliance on God and through the way she lived her life, Elizabeth II showed the world that she was indeed a faithful servant of God.

Our sovereign, King Charles III, has talked of his own faith being deeply rooted in the Church of England and he has taken up the role of ‘Defender of the Faith.' He has prayed for the guidance and the help of Almighty God. Throughout his reign let us uphold King Charles in prayer, that he will be God’s servant.

Prayer - Everlasting God, we pray for King Charles. Comfort him at his time of grief. Bless his reign, encourage him and sustain him in his faith. Guide his decision making and give him wisdom for the work you have for him. Amen

Photo by Northern Ireland Office licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license