December 30

In a beautiful prayer of supplication, David sets forth the desire of our own hearts. We read Psalm 90:17 and add our voice to its plea: “Let the beauty of the Lord our God be upon us and establish Thou the work of our hands…” for emphasis it reiterates, “…yea, the work of our hands, establish Thou it.”

Most of us recognize that apart from the Lord’s touch upon our lives we cannot hope to realize the aspirations of our hearts through our labor. The essence of what is beautiful in life comes not from the baubles it allows us to wear or the possessions it enables us to display in our fine homes. Life’s lovely things are felt within.

The satisfaction we feel at a job well done is beautiful. The delight that warms our hearts as we watch children play gleefully is indescribably lovely. The joy we feel in our ability to lend a helping hand to one in need is beyond compare to any mere worldly acquisition we may obtain as reward for our labor.

We realize that for any endeavor of ours to be abiding—whether in the realm of professional achievement or of personal interaction—it must be established by the Lord. We desire that He place His stamp of approval upon our life’s work so it may be beautiful, so it may be established, so it may enhance the beauty of life.