What does it mean to pray the Psalms?
Often, when you are depressed, your prayers are, let’s face it, depressing. You don’t have enthusiasm or joy. You can’t think of the right words. It’s easier not to pray. However, you miss out on prayer’s immense benefits and God’s blessings.
If you are not praying well on your own, let David help you. God’s Word is alive. I promise you that this will help your depression and your walk with God.
The Psalms were originally written to be songs and prayers. Most of them are fairly easy to turn into prayers. Some don’t work so well. You will figure out which ones work.
David, who wrote many of the Psalms, was a very emotional man. He often talked about being overwhelmed, cast down, crying night and day, covered in darkness, and surrounded by troubles.
His enemies were people with spears. Our enemies may be toxic people in our lives, bills, past abuse, or stressors in our lives.
How do you pray the Psalms?
When David says “enemies” or “reproach,” I change the words to the things that are bothering me, like “bills” or “that toxic person.” Then I change the pronouns to “I” and “You.” “The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart” changes to “You are nigh unto me when I have a broken heart.”
It’s a little cumbersome at first, but in time it becomes easy. It gives you words to pray. It leads you in directions in prayer you wouldn’t have thought to go. It helps you spend more time in prayer, which is what you need. Also, if you are praying His Word, you know you are praying in God’s will.
Psalm 13 New King James Version. To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David. (Scripture is in italics)
1 How long, O Lord? Will You forget me forever? How long will You hide Your face from me? 2 How long shall I take counsel in my soul, having sorrow (depression) in my heart daily? How long will my enemy (trouble, bills, mean person, sickness, etc.) be exalted over me? 3 Consider and hear me, O Lord my God; Enlighten my eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death; 4 Lest my enemy (trouble, etc.) say, “I have prevailed against him”; lest those who trouble me rejoice when I am moved. 5 But I have trusted in Your mercy; my heart shall rejoice in Your salvation. 6 I will sing to the (You) Lord, because He has (You have) dealt bountifully with me. You can add some details. You have dealt bountifully with me by helping me pay my bills, providing food, giving health, etc. Listing your blessings also helps you to be thankful and helps decrease depression.
Sometimes, you need to change the pronouns.
Psalm 27: The Lord is You are my light and my salvation; Whom shall I fear? The Lord is You are the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? 2 When the wicked (substitute your trouble here) came against me to eat up my flesh, my enemies (substitute the word “stress”) and foes, (anxiety) they stumbled and fell.3 Though an army (the things you are worried about) may encamp against me, my heart shall not fear; Though war (depression) may rise against me, in this I will be confident.4 One thing I have desired of the You, Lord, that will I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord (the church) all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the You, Lord, and to inquire in His Your temple.5 For in the time of trouble (this terrible thing that is happening right now.) He You shall hide me in His Your pavilion; in the secret place of His Your tabernacle He You shall hide me; He You shall set me high upon a rock. 6 And now my head shall be lifted up above my enemies (my trouble) all around me; therefore I will offer sacrifices of joy in His Your tabernacle; I will sing, yes, I will sing praises to the Lord.
You can also change the words to fit prayers for others. In Psalm 27:4, You might pray, “One thing I have desired of the Lord, that will I seek, that my children may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of their lives.”
When you pray a Psalm that touches you, you can pray it over and over, substituting your friends’ or family members’ names. Then, your prayer turns into intercession. “…that Joe may dwell in the house of the Lord…” “…that Mary may dwell in the house of the Lord…”
When David talks of “Abraham” or “Israel,” I might substitute the word “church.” When he talks about “the land of Canaan,” I might substitute “the promised land” or “the Holy Ghost.”
Praying Psalms also gives you more variety in your prayer. On my own, if someone named Sally was bullying me, I might pray, “God, help Sally to quit bullying me.” Using David’s words, I can pray, “Let mine adversaries Sally be clothed with shame, and let them her cover themselves herself with their her own confusion as with a mantle.”
Sometimes, on my own, even though I am sincere, my prayer might be a bit boring, “I love You; I praise You.”
Using David’s words, I can pray, “I will sing of mercy and justice; to You, O Lord, I will sing praises. I will behave wisely in a perfect way. Oh, when will You come to me? I will walk within my house with a perfect heart. I will set nothing wicked before my eyes; I hate the work of those who fall away; it shall not cling to me. A perverse heart shall depart from me; I will not know wickedness.”
I’m not saying you should always pray the Psalms but do it when you are having trouble praying with your own words or when you need to add some variety and depth to your prayers. In those times when you pray for two minutes and are tempted to quit because you just don’t feel like praying, pull out the book of Psalms and pray three chapters. Or five. Or ten.
Even if you start the prayer not wanting to pray or not feeling God at all, you will feel better by the end. God’s Word is alive.
What about when David wants to KILL his enemies?
David lived under the law that said, “An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth.” He often prayed for the death of his enemies. However, Jesus said to love your enemies; pray for them that despitefully use you. We want to follow Jesus as we live under grace.
There was a woman I highly respected who hurt me very deeply, causing much grief and anxiety in my life. I was praying Psalm 55, “…my heart was sore pained within me…Fearfulness and trembling are come upon me…it was not an enemy that reproached me…but it was thou, a (wo)man mine equal, my guide…” Those were words that fit my situation to a tee.
However, then it said, “Let death seize upon them, and let them go down quick into hell; for wickedness is in their dwellings…” No, I truly didn’t want her to die and go to hell for what she said. In praying that verse, I could pray, “Let death seize upon her words that hurt me. Let death seize upon my grief and anxiety that she caused me, and let them go down quick into hell.”
When David prays for the death of his enemies, you can pray for the death of their actions or attitudes or pray for the death of your hurt or your PTSD that their actions caused. If it fits, you could pray, “Let repentance seize upon them, so they can change their actions and not go down to hell.”
Then what do you do? How do you heal from their hurt? Pray the next verse, “As for me, I will call upon God, and the Lord will save me. Evening, morning, and at noon will I pray and cry aloud, and He shall hear my voice. He has delivered my soul in peace from the battle that was against me…Cast your burden upon the Lord, and he shall sustain thee. He shall never suffer the righteous to be moved.”
After someone hurts you, it’s best if you can talk to them, and they can make it right. However, realistically, that doesn’t always happen. Sometimes, the offense was too long ago. Sometimes they don’t care. Whether they repent or apologize is not your responsibility. You’re responsible for your attitude and your relationship with God. Praying the Psalms can help with that.
Which Psalms can be turned into prayers?
Different Psalms were written with different purposes. Some were written as prayers. Others can easily be turned into prayers by changing a few words. But there are many that are reiterations of history, exhortations, or descriptions and are not able to be prayed. I went through and attempted to pray them all and marked the ones that could be turned into prayers.
Here is a list of Psalms that lend themselves to prayer. Some are easy to pray. Others take a bit of work to change the words. Psalms 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 11, 15, 19, 20, 23, 24, 25, 27, 28, 30, 31, 32, 34, 36, 37, 38, 40, 42, 43, 46, 47, 48, 51, 52, 54, 56, 61, 63, 69, 70, 71, 73, 75, 77, 84, 86, 91, 92, 94, 95, 96, 100, 103, 104, 116, 119, 120, 121, 123, 130, 138, 139, 140, 141, 142, 143, 144, 145, 146,
Psalm 119 is the longest book in the Bible, with 176 verses. When you are down and miserable, lift up your spirit by praising your way through the chapter. Verses 1 and 2 say, “Blessed are the undefiled in the way, who walk in the law of the Lord. Blessed are they that keep his testimonies and that seek him with the whole heart.” Pray this, “Praise God that I am undefiled in the way because I walk in the law of the Lord. Thank You that I know how to keep your testimonies and how to seek You with my whole heart.” If you can make it clear to the end, there is no way you will still be sad. This idea came from Teri Spears and Nona Freeman, two great women of God.
For more examples, click these links: https://soundmindtalk.com/building-a-relationship-with-god/praying-some-psalms/ and https://soundmindtalk.com/building-a-relationship-with-god/praying-some-psalms-2/
