Old/New Testament
Praise and Prayer for Help
For the director of music. A song of David.
40 I waited patiently for the Lord.
He turned to me and heard my cry.
2 He lifted me out of the pit of destruction,
out of the sticky mud.
He stood me on a rock.
He made my feet steady.
3 He put a new song in my mouth.
It was a song of praise to our God.
Many people will see this and worship him.
Then they will trust the Lord.
4 Happy is the person
who trusts the Lord.
He doesn’t turn to those who are proud,
to those who worship false gods.
5 Lord our God, you have done many miracles.
Your plans for us are many.
If I tried to tell them all,
there would be too many to count.
6 You do not want sacrifices and offerings.
But you have made a hole in my ear
to show that my body and life are yours.
You do not ask for burnt offerings
and offerings to take away sins.
7 Then I said, “Look, I have come.
It is written about me in the book.
8 My God, I want to do what you want.
Your teachings are in my heart.”
9 I will tell about your goodness in the great meeting of your people.
Lord, you know my lips are not silent.
10 I do not hide your goodness in my heart.
I speak about your loyalty and salvation.
I do not hide your love and truth
from the people in the great meeting.
11 Lord, do not hold back your mercy from me.
Let your love and truth always protect me.
12 Troubles have gathered around me.
There are too many to count.
My sins have caught me.
I cannot see a way to escape.
I have more sins than hairs on my head.
I have lost my courage.
13 Please, Lord, save me.
Hurry, Lord, to help me.
14 People are trying to kill me.
Shame them and disgrace them.
People want to hurt me.
Let them run away in disgrace.
15 People are making fun of me.
Let them be shamed into silence.
16 But let those who follow you
be happy and glad.
They love you for saving them.
May they always say, “Praise the Lord!”
17 Lord, I am poor and helpless.
But please remember me.
You are my helper and savior.
My God, do not wait.
A Prayer in Time of Sickness
For the director of music. A song of David.
41 Happy is the person who thinks about the poor.
When trouble comes, the Lord will save him.
2 The Lord will protect him and spare his life.
The Lord will bless him in the land.
The Lord will not let his enemies take him.
3 The Lord will give him strength when he is sick.
The Lord will make him well again.
4 I said, “Lord, be kind to me.
Heal me because I have sinned against you.”
5 My enemies are saying bad things about me.
They say, “When will he die and be forgotten?”
6 Some people come to see me.
But they lie.
They just come to get bad news.
Then they go and gossip.
7 All my enemies whisper about me.
They think the worst about me.
8 They say, “He has a terrible disease.
He will never get out of bed again.”
9 My best and truest friend ate at my table.
Now even he has turned against me.
10 Lord, have mercy on me.
Give me strength so I can pay them back.
11 My enemies do not defeat me.
That’s how I know you are pleased with me.
12 Because I am innocent, you support me.
You will let me be with you forever.
13 Praise the Lord, the God of Israel.
He has always been,
and he will always be.
Amen and amen.
Book 2
Psalms 42—72
Wishing to Be Near God
For the director of music. A maskil of the sons of Korah.
42 A deer thirsts for a stream of water.
In the same way, I thirst for you, God.
2 I thirst for the living God.
When can I go to meet with him?
3 Day and night, my tears have been my food.
People are always saying,
“Where is your God?”
4 When I remember these things,
I speak with a broken heart.
I used to walk with the crowd.
I led the happy crowd to God’s Temple,
with songs of praise.
5 Why am I so sad?
Why am I so upset?
I should put my hope in God.
I should keep praising him,
My Savior and 6 my God.
I am very sad.
So I remember you while I am in the land where the Jordan River begins.
I will remember you while I am near the Hermon mountains
and on the mountain of Mizar.
7 Troubles have come again and again.
They sound like waterfalls.
Your waves are crashing
all around me.
8 The Lord shows his true love every day.
At night I have a song,
and I pray to my living God.
9 I say to God, my Rock,
“Why have you forgotten me?
Why am I sad
and troubled by my enemies?”
10 My enemies’ insults make me feel
as if my bones were broken.
They are always saying,
“Where is your God?”
11 Why am I so sad?
Why am I so upset?
I should put my hope in God.
I should keep praising him,
my Savior and my God.
Paul Sails for Rome
27 It was decided that we would sail for Italy. An officer named Julius, who served in the Emperor’s[a] army, guarded Paul and some other prisoners. 2 We got on a ship and left. The ship was from the city of Adramyttium and was about to sail to different ports in Asia. Aristarchus, a man from the city of Thessalonica in Macedonia, went with us. 3 The next day we came to Sidon. Julius was very good to Paul. He gave Paul freedom to go visit his friends, who took care of his needs. 4 We left Sidon and sailed close to the island of Cyprus because the wind was blowing against us. 5 We went across the sea by Cilicia and Pamphylia. Then we came to the city of Myra, in Lycia. 6 There the officer found a ship from Alexandria that was going to Italy. So he put us on it.
7 We sailed slowly for many days. We had a hard time reaching Cnidus because the wind was blowing against us. We could not go any farther that way. So we sailed by the south side of the island of Crete near Salmone. 8 We sailed along the coast, but the sailing was hard. Then we came to a place called Safe Harbors, near the city of Lasea.
9 But we had lost much time. It was now dangerous to sail, because it was already after the Day of Cleansing.[b] So Paul warned them, 10 “Men, I can see there will be a lot of trouble on this trip. The ship and the things in the ship will be lost. Even our lives may be lost!” 11 But the captain and the owner of the ship did not agree with Paul. So the officer did not believe Paul. Instead, the officer believed what the captain and owner of the ship said. 12 And that harbor was not a good place for the ship to stay for the winter. So most of the men decided that the ship should leave. The men hoped we could go to Phoenix. The ship could stay there for the winter. (Phoenix was a city on the island of Crete. It had a harbor which faced southwest and northwest.)
The Storm
13 Then a good wind began to blow from the south. The men on the ship thought, “This is the wind we wanted, and now we have it!” So they pulled up the anchor. We sailed very close to the island of Crete. 14 But then a very strong wind named the “Northeaster” came from the island. 15 This wind took the ship and carried it away. The ship could not sail against it. So we stopped trying and let the wind blow us. 16 We went below a small island named Cauda. Then we were able to bring in the lifeboat, but it was very hard to do. 17 After the men took the lifeboat in, they tied ropes around the ship to hold it together. The men were afraid that the ship would hit the sandbanks of Syrtis.[c] So they lowered the sail and let the wind carry the ship. 18 The next day the storm was blowing us so hard that the men threw out some of the cargo. 19 A day later they threw out the ship’s equipment. 20 For many days we could not see the sun or the stars. The storm was very bad. We lost all hope of staying alive—we thought we would die.
21 The men had gone without food for a long time. Then one day Paul stood up before them and said, “Men, I told you not to leave Crete. You should have listened to me. Then you would not have all this trouble and loss. 22 But now I tell you to cheer up. None of you will die! But the ship will be lost. 23 Last night an angel from God came to me. This is the God I worship. I am his. 24 God’s angel said, ‘Paul, do not be afraid! You must stand before Caesar. And God has given you this promise: He will save the lives of all those men sailing with you.’ 25 So men, be cheerful! I trust in God. Everything will happen as his angel told me. 26 But we will crash on an island.”
The Holy Bible, International Children’s Bible® Copyright© 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.