A Blessing of Favor and Purpose.
“May the favor of the Lord our God rest on us; establish the work of our hands for us— yes, establish the work of our hands.”
Psalm 90:17
We pray for so many things regarding our sons and daughters, their walk with the Lord, protection from spiritual oppression and attack, their relationships, their attitudes and desires. Sometimes we get consumed by the needs and we neglect the blessings. And although the needs are great, it’s good to shift our focus from the struggle to the One who makes all things new.
So today, we’re going to pray a blessing over our sons and daughters. Psalm 90:17 is a beautiful prayer and even more so when you look at each word in the original Hebrew language. When we understand the original language, we understand more deeply what God is teaching us, the power that protects and sustains us, and the calling He has on our lives.
The prayer in Psalm 90:17 is twofold. The first is the request for God’s favor - God pouring His Presence and blessing on us. The second is the request to give us purpose and make us productive in a way that brings glory to Him.
Let’s look at the key words from Psalm 90:17
When we pray for favor, what are we actually praying for? We often think the word ‘favor’ means goodwill or kindness. When some does a favor for us, it is nice and an expression of care not out of obligation, but out of the goodness of their heart. When someone shows favor toward us we feel chosen, appreciated and special. But the Hebrew word for favor, noam, means so much more!
Favor is God’s “delightfulness or pleasantness, splendor and grace” (1) It is reflective of God and His character. When we pray for favor on our children, we pray that God would pour out Himself on them, giving them a glimpse of Eden and life before the fall, when God walked in the garden with Adam and everything was set at one with Him. God’s favor is refreshing and sustaining. It is God’s goodness, delightfulness, splendor and grace lavished on us when we’re not deserving and in ways we could never deserve or earn. It is glorious and it reminds us that He has more for us than what this world offers. His favor is refreshing, encouraging, and reminds us that He is present and working. And how do we typically respond to favor? We are inclined to be drawn to the one who shows it toward us. Part of our prayer should be not only that God pours out His favor on them, but that our sons and daughters respond by drawing near to Him, craving time with Him, and recognize the blessing and gift of His favor on them.
The next word is “rest” (or be in some translations) and that is the Hebrew word haya. It means “to exist or come to pass, be accomplished or committed to” (2) When something comes to rest, it exists. It settles upon. When God’s favor settles on us, it rests, it stays, it provides a reminder of His presence and His protection and nothing can move it or remove it from us. When something rests it is linked to a location or purpose. God’s favor rests on us with purpose, position, and power and nothing has the power or authority to remove it.
“On Us” is the Hebrew word ‘al’ and it means “according to, on account of, on behalf of, concerning, beside, in addition to, together with, beyond, above, over, by, on to, towards, to, against.” (3) Scripture tells us that in all times and in every way, God is surrounding us from all directions. It’s akin to Psalm 139:5 which says, “You hem me in, behind and before, and lay your hand upon me.” When we pray this blessing, we are asking for God’s favor to rest on us in every way at all times, everywhere.
The second part of this prayer of blessing is the request to establish the work of our hands. This is asking God to use us to do meaningful work that reflects His presence in our lives. The word ‘establish’ (in some translations the word used is conform) is the Hebrew word “kun” and it means “to set up, appoint, render sure and prosperous; to ordain or order, to confirm and direct.” Some verses used the word ‘determined’ or ‘prepared’ others the phrase, ‘firmly decided’ or ‘make ready’. Think about that. When we ask God to establish our sons and daughters, we’re asking Him to prepare them, make them ready, ordain their life, their choices, their steps, and ultimately, their eternity. When God establishes someone, He blesses them. That does not mean their life is easy, but it does mean it is fully in His sovereign keeping.
We’re asking God to establish their work- that which they choose to do daily, whether occupation or vocation, whether hobby or leisure. There is nothing more frustrating than pointless work, right? How many times have we done something and asked, why am I doing this? What purpose does it have? We do not want to see our sons and daughters disillusioned with life, their purpose, or their value. The Hebrew word for work is “maase” and it means “a transaction, product, act, art, labor, occupation” (5). 1 Corinthians 10:31 reminds us that whatever we do, it should be done for the glory of God. But none of that is accomplished in our own strength. Unless God enables it, we cannot do it. We want God to appoint the actions and choices of our sons and daughters so the work that they do reflects His presence in their life and brings glory to Him. We need to pray that our sons and daughters see that even the menial, daily things have eternal value.
This part of the blessing is a prayer that asks God to help us see the eternal in the temporal and the divine in the midst of the mundane. We want our children to recognize that things like changing a baby’s diaper can be a reminder of how God lifts us out of our sinful mess and cleans us up, making us fresh and new. And each time they do that, it should remind them of God’s faithfulness to continually meet us in our mess and make us more like Christ. We want them to always be mindful that although making a meal can become a chore, it can also be a reminder of God’s provision, His daily bread for us, both physically and spiritually. There are so many things that can quickly and easily become trivial and shift our mind and focus toward the temporal, but if we have our mindset fixed on Christ, those daily chores become gentle reminders of His presence, His purpose, and His plan for us. He appoints days, seasons, events, relationships, and opportunities for His plan and His glory. Nothing is pointless. Everything can bring Him glory.
Today, let’s take time to pray through Psalm 90:17, pondering the deeper meanings there and asking the Lord to bless our sons and daughters abundantly, to rest His favor upon them and establish the work of their hands.
“Heavenly Father, Holy One, Almighty, Everlasting God. You show us favor even though we are undeserving. You delight in lavishing Your blessings on us because You love us. I pray that You would be gracious to rest your favor on (name) today. Let it settle on them, wash over them, go before and behind them. May they recognize Your favor in the warmth of the sunshine, the provision of a warm cup of coffee or the friendly smile of a co-worker or friend. Remind them that Your favor keeps them in hardship, sustains them when they are weary, and infuses them with joy that is unexplainable in a world saturated with sin and darkness. Let the blessing of Your favor be evident to those around them, so that it would ring loudly as a testimony of God’s presence and purpose in their life.”
“I ask, too, Lord, that You would establish the work of their hands. Let whatever they choose to do, be blessed by You and bring You glory. Open their eyes and heart to see Your purpose and Your presence in every thing. Don’t let them fall into disillusionment or feeling purposeless and directionless. Don’t let the darkness and depravity of this world overshadow Your Presence in their daily life. In all of the tedious things they must do, bring a recognition of Your daily provision and presence. Let them see your favor in recognizable and undeniable ways so that their mind will remain fixed on Christ and their perspective will continue to be eternal to their hope and inheritance in Christ. I know You can do this Lord.”
“May the favor of the Lord our God rest upon (name), establish the work of their hands for them - yes, establish the work of their hands, Lord. I pray this blessing in the mighty name of Jesus’, amen.”
Pray without ceasing.
H5278 - nōʿam - Strong's Hebrew Lexicon (NIV). Retrieved from https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/h5278/niv/wlc/0-1/
H1961 - hāyâ - Strong's Hebrew Lexicon (NIV). Retrieved from https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/h1961/niv/wlc/0-1/
H5921 - ʿal - Strong's Hebrew Lexicon (NIV). Retrieved from https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/h5921/niv/wlc/0-1/
H3559 - kûn - Strong's Hebrew Lexicon (NIV). Retrieved from https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/h3559/niv/wlc/0-1/
H4639 - maʿăśê - Strong's Hebrew Lexicon (NIV). Retrieved from https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/h4639/niv/wlc/0-1/