Daily Devotional Thought--From the Psalms

Dear brother and sister in Christ,

Today's Psalm is 115:1-8, 11:

1 Not to us, O LORD, not to us, but to your name give glory,
for the sake of your steadfast love and your faithfulness!
2 Why should the nations say,
"Where is their God?"
3 Our God is in the heavens;
he does all that he pleases.
4 Their idols are silver and gold,
the work of human hands.
5 They have mouths, but do not speak;
eyes, but do not see.
6 They have ears, but do not hear;
noses, but do not smell.
7 They have hands, but do not feel; feet, but do not walk;
and they do not make a sound in their throat.
8 Those who make them become like them;
so do all who trust in them.
11 You who fear the LORD, trust in the LORD!
He is their help and their shield.

From Reading the Psalms with Luther:
The 115th psalm is a psalm of thanks in which God is praised that He is the true, helping God. All other gods are vain idols that cannot help us. Therefore, we pray in verse 1, "Not to us, O Lord...," that is, do not look at how religious and respectable we are, lest You no longer help us and we become like the heathen, a people without God, or again, as those who have a helpless god, as they accuse us. But rather look to Your glory and to Your name, that You are called and reputed to be a true, living God, abundant in help. For Your name's sake come with us, not for our name's sake--that we are called God's servants, workers, singers, fasters, and well-doers--for such names the heathen also can have and are of no help.

And so we pray:
O God, You have been our Helper in the past, preserving us unto this day in body and soul. Forsake us not, but demonstrate to the world that You are the God of heaven, ruling over all, and mighty to save. Cast down the idols of the heathen by the Word of the cross, and build the kingdom of Your Son in our hearts. Amen.