The Source of True Satisfaction (Psalm 81:10)

I am the Lord your God, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt. Open your mouth wide and I will fill it.
– Psalm 81:10

Oh, what a great verse, and yet what a sad verse when you look at it in its context. Because what God is saying here in Psalm 81 is that his people in the Old Testament who he was ready to satisfy with everything they needed, were turning aside to false gods and idols, and bowing down to them, looking for satisfaction from idols who cannot satisfy.

Psalm 81:10 challenges us to bring our deepest needs before the Lord.

And how often are we prone to do the same thing? To look to people, things, pursuits in this world over and above pursuit of God as the only one who can satisfy our souls, who can satisfy our deepest needs. And God is saying here in his word, “I am the Lord your God. I will satisfy you. Open your mouth wide and I will fill it.” This is why we come before God. Every day at night we seek Him because He is the only one who can satisfy our needs.

I think about my time or your time with the Lord in the morning. This is what we do. We’re just opening our mouths wide. God, from the beginning of our day, we are seeking you. We’re worshiping you. We’re trusting in you, and we’re praying for your help with everything that comes to our lives today. Please lead us. Guide us, direct us. We’ve got our mouths open. When we open his Word we’re saying, teach us, instruct us. Help us to know you more. Help us to grow in righteousness. Our mouths are wide open.

I guess that’s the question then. Is this your posture toward God? Are you coming to him continually with not just mouth, with heart, with mind, open before him, just saying, fill me. Help me. Lead me. Guide me. Direct me. Teach me. Do whatever you want in my life. Use my life however you want.

Psalm 81:10 challenges us to seek God above everything and everyone in this world.

This is what it means to know the Lord as God, as the one you seek over and above everyone and everything in this world. This is the one you worship, and you trust, and you love with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength in light of his love for you. The middle of Psalm 81:10, “I am the Lord, your God, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt, who loves you so much. I’m your deliverer. I’m your savior. And I’m your Lord. So open your mouth wide and I will fill it.”

So we pray, “Yes, God. Yes, in our lives we seek you today as the Lord our God. You alone are God. Nothing and no one in this world can satisfy us like you. We seek you. You alone can satisfy our souls.” And we say, “Here we are with mouths wide open, with hearts, wide open, with minds wide open.

This verse encourages us to become dependent on God for everything we need.

God, we pray that that would be our posture before you. We pray for poverty of spirit, as Jesus talks about in Matthew 5:3, that just comes to you, just totally dependent on you for everything we need, God, for we know that is who we are. We cannot do anything apart from you. So we open our mouths wide, our hearts wide. We pray, help us, fill us, lead us, guide us, direct us. Protect us from temptation. Keep us from sin. Help us to walk with you closely. Help us to honor you.

We pray for power to spread the gospel today. God, we pray for everything our hearts need that is only found in you. And we praise you for your grace to fill our mouths, to fill our hearts with everything we need. And God, we intercede today for people who don’t know you in this way. God, whose mouths and hearts are starving for what can only be found in you. God, we pray that for people around us today. Help us to point people to the satisfaction that is found in you alone, Jesus, to this salvation that’s found in you alone.

Prayer for the Jabal Nafusah Berber People

And God, for the Jabal Nafusah Berber people of Libya, for 200,000 of them who have little to no knowledge of your love, in Jesus. God, we pray they need you, Jesus. They need the true knowledge of you and what you have done for their sins.

God, we pray for the spread of the gospel to the Jabal Nafusah Berber people of Libya. Show yourself as their Savior and the Satisfier of their souls. And please use our lives, our prayers now, our resources toward that end. God, we praise you as the Lord our God. And we say to you today with Psalm 81:10, we open our mouths wide and we trust you will fill them with everything we need. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.”