First Baptist Church Litchfield
January 11, 2026

      • Isaiah 42:5–8ESV

  • To God Be The Glory
  • Glory To His Name
  • Hosanna

      • Isaiah 43:5–7ESV

  • I Will Glory In My Redeemer

      • Revelation 21:5–6ESV

      • Revelation 21:22–27ESV

  • All Glory Be To Christ

  • Walking the Path of Prayer in 2026

    Last week, we began our journey into Psalm 143 by stepping into David’s prayer of desperation. David is weak. His enemies are real. His soul is crushed. His strength is fading. And his only refuge—his only hope—is the Lord.
    We said last week that Psalm 143 charts a P.A.T.H. for God’s people—a path of Prayer, Abiding, Togetherness, and Holy Living & Mission—a path that draws us closer to Jesus and teaches us how to walk in a manner worthy of the gospel. And we noted that every true movement of spiritual renewal begins in the same place: on our knees.
    Before David asks God to act, he asks God to hear. Before he seeks direction, he confesses dependence. Psalm 143 teaches us that prayer is confession of spiritual need. And that is precisely where God delights to meet His people.
    Last week, we focused especially on the first movement of dependent prayer—praying from humility. David showed us that we do cannot come to God by our own merit for a righteous defense. We must come with empty hands and honest hearts, pleading for mercy. And the gospel assured us that in Christ, such prayer is not rejected—it is welcomed.
    But David does not stop there.
    Psalm 143, teaches us that dependent prayer is not only humble, but honest. Not only honest, but remembering. And remembering becomes the soil out of which hope, guidance, and obedience grow.
    Think about 2026 as hiking a narrow mountain trail at dusk. The path is steep, uneven, and unfamiliar. As the light fades, every step becomes more dangerous. You can no longer see clearly, and the margin for error disappears. In that moment, the problem is not merely that the trail is difficult—it is that you cannot navigate it alone.
    Now imagine a seasoned guide steps beside you. He knows the terrain. He has walked this path before. He carries a light. The trail does not change—but you do. You stop guessing. You stop panicking. You begin to follow.
    That is Psalm 143. David is not asking God to remove the path; he is asking God to walk it with him, to illuminate it, to guide him step by step through the darkness. That is what we are asking of God for our church, community, and home in 2026.

    Setting the Direction for Part Two

    As we continue this psalm today, we will see David model three additional habits of dependent prayer—
    We will learn how to:
    Pray in Dependence Casting Ourselves fully on God’s steadfast love
    Pray for Transformation Desiring God’s will More than Relief
    Pray with Confidence Trusting God to Act For His Name’s sake
    Psalm 143 invites us not merely to pray more often, but to pray more deeply—to walk the PATH of dependence with confidence that the God who has been faithful before will be faithful still.
    So let us take up this psalm again learning how to walk the path of prayer together in the days ahead.

    IV. Praying in Dependence: Casting Ourselves Fully on God’s Steadfast Love (Psalm 143:7–9)

    Psalm 143:7–9 “7 Answer me quickly, O Lord! My spirit fails! Hide not your face from me, lest I be like those who go down to the pit. 8 Let me hear in the morning of your steadfast love, for in you I trust. Make me know the way I should go, for to you I lift up my soul. 9 Deliver me from my enemies, O Lord! I have fled to you for refuge.”
    In verses 7 and 8, David’s prayer reaches a crescendo of urgency. The phrase “answer me quickly” barely captures the desperation of the moment. David is crying out as one who feels moments away from collapse. His strength is gone. His spirit is failing. If the Lord does not intervene, David believes he will not survive.
    The imagery David uses is striking. “Lest I be like those who go down to the pit.” The pit can refer to a deep cistern, a dungeon, or even the grave itself (Ps. 88:3–6; Isa. 38:18). In our text, David is using the term metaphorically. David feels as though he is being buried alive. The word picture conveys the idea of being pressed down, hemmed in, suffocating beneath the weight of his circumstances. Once again, his suffering feels claustrophobic. There is no escape unless the Lord acts.
    David begs God. “Do not hide Your face from me!” In Scripture, the face of God represents His favor, presence, and covenant nearness (Num. 6:24–26). To have God’s face hidden feels like abandonment. David is pleading: Do not turn me away in my hour of need. His need is revealed in verse 9,“ Deliver me from my enemies, O Lord! I have fled to you for refuge.” David is not depending on his army or his weapons. He as absolutely reliant on the Lord to be both his army and his refuge.
    All of this language communicates one central truth—David is utterly dependent on the Lord. He has no strength left. No backup plan. No alternative rescue. He’s desperate.
    Think about how a helpless mother feels for her child who is in danger. Imagine a mother watching her child fall through the ice of a frozen lake. The boy is thrashing, gasping, moments from death. The mother runs—panicked, breathless—to the nearest fire station. She grabs the first firefighter she sees and pleads for immediate help. She is not calmly explaining her sons situation. She’s not composed. She’s screaming, “Please help me now! My son is dying.”
    That is the posture of David’s prayer. He is the child sinking beneath the ice. He is the mother pleading for rescue. And the Lord is his only hope. David casts himself entirely upon God.
    Scripture reminds us that this is exactly where God meets His people. “The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit” (Ps. 34:18). “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness” (2 Cor. 12:9).
    In verse 8, David looks beyond the night. “Let me hear in the morning of your steadfast love.” David is asking God to get him through the darkness. He knows the night is long, but he also knows that sorrow does not have the final word. “Weeping may tarry for the night, but joy comes with the morning” (Ps. 30:5).
    What David longs to experience when morning comes is God’s hesed—His steadfast love. It is God’s covenant love—never stopping, never failing, never giving up love. It is a love rooted in eternity past, effective in the present, and secured for eternity future through the greater Son of David, Jesus Christ (Rom. 8:38–39). David trusts that if God brings him to the morning, God’s faithful love will meet him there.
    Finally, David prays, “Make me know the way I should go.” He confesses something we often resist admitting—he does not know what to do. He lacks wisdom. He lacks direction. He needs revelation. How many times have God’s people got themselves in trouble because they acted without consulting the Lord? David understands that there are times when obedience needs guidance. God must show the path before David can walk it.
    Scripture echoes this posture: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths” (Prov. 3:5–6). “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path” (Ps. 119:105).
    Beloved, this is what faithful dependent prayer looks like when strength is gone. It is urgent. It is honest. It is reliant. When you do not know what to do, lift your soul to the Lord. When the night feels endless, ask God to bring you to the morning. When wisdom is lacking, ask Him to show you the way (James 1:5-6).
    Do not wait until you feel strong to pray. Pray because you know apart from the grace of God you are weak. Cast yourself fully upon the Lord and you will receive his steadfast love. The God who did not spare His own Son will not abandon you in your hour of need (Rom. 8:32). That is the prayer of dependence—and it is a prayer God delights to answer with his steadfast love.

    V. Praying for Transformation: Desiring God’s Will More Than Immediate Relief (Psalm 143:10)

    “Teach me to do your will, for you are my God! Let your good Spirit lead me on level ground!”
    By the time we arrive at verse 10, David has already positioned himself before the Lord as a servant. In verses 2 and 12, he openly acknowledges that he stands before God as one who belongs to Him. In verse 10, David both submits to God’s authority and he places himself under God’s instruction. David is both a servant and a student.
    “Teach me to do your will.” Being both a student and an educator, I have learned that teaching is as much about formation as it is about retaining information. David is not merely asking what to do, but how to live in a way that pleases God in this very moment. He longs to know the posture, the attitude, the faith-filled obedience that honors the Lord while the darkness still lingers.
    David understands that obedience is more than external compliance. It flows from a heart shaped by truth. That is why elsewhere he prays, “Teach me your way, O Lord, that I may walk in your truth; unite my heart to fear your name” (Ps. 86:11). God’s will is not fragmented or divided. It calls for a single-minded, heart united, loyal love—an undivided heart fixed upon the Lord.
    And notice David’s grounding: “for you are my God.” This is covenant language. David’s desire to obey arises from a place of belonging. David is the covenant king, and he knows it. The will of God is not burdensome to those who know Him as their God (1 John 5:3).
    Scripture reminds us that even the desire to obey is a work of grace. Paul tells the Philippians, “For it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure” (Phil. 2:13). David is asking God to do what only God can do—transform his heart so that obedience flows naturally from devotion, especially in the darkness of the pit of suffering.
    This is the very posture we see perfected in our Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus said, “My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to accomplish his work” (John 4:34). And what was that work? It was nothing less than to lay down His life as a substitute for sinners—to bear the judgment we deserved upon the cross.
    As He suffered, Jesus did not shake His fist at the Father. He did not accuse God of injustice. Instead, He entrusted Himself fully to the righteous judgment of the Father. As Peter reminds us, “When he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly” (1 Pet. 2:23). As we’ve already witnessed in the Garden of Gethsemane, as the weight of the cross pressed upon His soul, Jesus prayed, “Not my will, but yours, be done” (Luke 22:42).
    David’s prayer in Psalm 143 anticipates this Christ-shaped obedience. It is a prayer for submission. It is the cry of a servant who longs to please his God—even when obedience is costly, even when the path leads through suffering. Furthermore, David is a student who desires to be conformed into the image of his Teacher.
    I have always found the idea of mentoring or apprenticeships appealing for my students. The idea is to take skilled apprentice and put them beside a master craftsman for a considerable amount of time. The idea is, the apprentice does not simply want instructions; he wants to learn the craft—to see how the master works, how he handles the tools, how he responds when the material resists. He knows that only by walking closely with the master can his work become refined.
    That is David’s teachable spirit before God. He is not demanding answers. He is asking to be shaped, molded, taught by the Master.
    David then invokes the Spirit of God: “Let your good Spirit lead me on level ground.” David knows that left to himself, the path ahead is dangerous. The terrain is uneven. His heart is prone to wander. He needs divine guidance.
    “Level ground” speaks of safety, stability, and direction (Isa. 26:7). David is asking God to go before him, to smooth what is treacherous, and to guide him faithfully. And on this side of the cross, we know even more fully how God answers this prayer. Jesus has given us His Spirit—the Comforter, Counselor, and Teacher (John 14:16–17, 26).
    The Spirit convicts us of sin (John 16:8), leads us into truth (John 16:13), empowers obedience (Rom. 8:13), and sustains us in suffering (Rom. 8:26). This is grace—God not only showing us the path, but walking it with us.
    Beloved, when suffering becomes your dark reality, resist the temptation to accuse God. Instead, ask Him to transform you. Pray, “Lord, use this moment to shape me into a servant you delight in. Teach me to do your will—even when it is hard.”
    Do not assume you already know what obedience looks like. Sit at the feet of the Lord. Let His Word instruct you. Let His Spirit guide you. Trust that the God who calls you to walk in His will is the same God who empowers you to do it.
    That is the grace of Psalm 143:10—a prayer for renewal and transformation.

    VI. Praying with Confidence: Trusting God to Act for the Sake of His Name (Psalm 143:11–12)

    Psalm 143:11–12 “11 For your name’s sake, O Lord, preserve my life! In your righteousness bring my soul out of trouble! 12 And in your steadfast love you will cut off my enemies, and you will destroy all the adversaries of my soul, for I am your servant.”
    David concludes his prayer where all faithful prayer must begin and end—with God. Twice he appeals to the Lord to act, and twice he grounds that appeal in God’s character: “for your name’s sake.”
    David understands something essential about covenant prayer. God’s name represents His reputation, His revealed character, His faithfulness to His promises. To ask God to act for His name’s sake is to ask Him to act in a way that displays His holiness, mercy, righteousness, and steadfast love.
    This is the same logic we see throughout Scripture. When Israel stood guilty and helpless in exile, the Lord declared, “It is not for your sake… that I am about to act, but for the sake of my holy name” (Ezek. 36:22). When judgment loomed, God restrained His wrath, saying, “For my name’s sake I defer my anger” (Isa. 48:9). When the people rebelled at the Red Sea, “Yet he saved them for his name’s sake, that he might make known his mighty power” (Ps. 106:8).
    David is praying out of that same covenant confidence. He knows that if God’s people are crushed and God’s servant is destroyed, then God’s name appears powerless among the nations. And God will not allow His righteous name to be profaned.
    Justice That Saves: God’s Name Vindicated Through Mercy
    David asks for a justice that saves, for God’s name ot be vindicated through his mercy. David prays, “In your righteousness bring my soul out of trouble.” David does not pit God’s righteousness against God’s mercy. He knows they work together. God’s righteousness is not only His justice against sin; it is His faithfulness to keep His promises.
    This theme reaches its fullness at the cross. Paul tells us that God put Christ forward as a propitiation “to show God’s righteousness… so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus” (Rom. 3:25–26). In other words, God saves sinners without compromising His name. The cross is God acting for His name’s sake while exercising mercy.
    I was privileged to have Dr. James Hamilton Jr. as my Biblical Theology professor at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. He describes God’s justice and mercy in his book Salvation Through Judgement as,
    Justice is God’s keeping his word and displaying his righteous character. Mercy is God’s freely pardoning and blessing those who deserve justice. Justice reveals who God is and accentuates the gratuitous splendor of his mercy.
    James M. Hamilton Jr.
    So in 2026, whatever your circumstances may be, smooth or chaotic, let your prayers be stable. Pray boldly trusting God is faithful. Let the cross settle forever the question of whether God can be both just and merciful toward you. He has already answered that question in Christ, which makes Davids plea for God’s steadfast love all the more sweet for us.
    Once again, David appeals to God’s steadfast love—His hesed—that faithful, covenant-keeping love that never gives up on those who belong to Him. “In your steadfast love you will cut off my enemies.” David looks a lot like the Son of David by not seeking personal vengeance, but entrusting justice to the Lord. As Peter would later say of Christ Himself, “When he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly” (1 Pet. 2:23).
    And then David closes with this final confession: “for I am your servant.” King David is the Lord’s slave. What a beautiful picture of humility. David is saying, “I am yours. Your reputation is bound up with my preservation.” As Samuel once assured Israel, “The Lord will not forsake his people, for his great name’s sake, because it has pleased the Lord to make you a people for himself” (1 Sam. 12:22).
    For us, this confidence is even greater. We belong to God through Jesus Christ. We have been sealed with His name. We have been united to His Son. And because of that, we pray with assurance. God will finish what He has begun—not because we are strong, but because His name is faithful to complete the work he has begun (Phil 1:6).
    So when we pray Psalm 143:11–12, we are praying the gospel. We are saying, “Lord, act on my behalf. I know I don’t deserve it, but because You are faithful, just, and merciful, preserve me for Your namesake.” And that is a prayer God delights to answer.

    Pray in 2026

    Psalm 143 reminds us that prayer is about drawing near to the right God with the right posture. David begins this psalm overwhelmed and ends he it anchored in hope. Keep in mind, his circumstances have not changed, but by praying from with humility, from honesty, with remembrance, in dependence, for transformation, and in confidence in God’s character, his heart has been re-centered on the hope of the Lord.
    In our sinful nature, it is not uncommon for prayer to fade into the background when pressure arises in our life. We turn inward, rely on ourselves, or grow silent before God. Yet the gospel meets us right where we are pressed. David’s prayer ultimately points us forward to Jesus Christ, who is the greater Son of David, who prayed in perfect dependence, who trusted the Father completely, and who secured for us bold access to the throne of grace through His cross and resurrection (Hebrews 4:14-16).
    Because Christ has borne our judgment, we can pray without fear. Because Christ has conquered the grave, we can pray with hope. And because Christ lives to intercede for us, we can walk this P.A.T.H. together as a church in 2026.
    This week, may we not merely talk about prayer, but return to it. And next week, we will take the next step on this path—learning how the God who hears us also speaks to us through His Word.
    Church, let us be a people who draw near to the Lord in 2026 from humility, with honesty, with remembrance, in dependence, for transformation, and with confidence knowing God will act for his name sake and our good.

      • Psalm 143ESV

      • Psalm 143:11–12ESV

      • Romans 8:28ESV

  • His Glory And My Good
First Baptist Church Litchfield
pastorjason.fbcl@gmail.com
217-324-4232
http://www.firstbaptistlitchfield.org/
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