One sunny summer afternoon more than 40 years ago a friend said, “Let’s write a song.” She suggested a verse from Psalm 143, and we were off and running.

We wrote “In Thee Do I Trust” at a time when I was rapidly transitioning from just going to church on Sunday to reaching for learning on how to live each day with God at the center of my life. They were happy, exciting times. I think the song reflects the joy and enthusiasm I felt then. After all these years, joy and enthusiasm continue, Psalm 143 means more to me — and this song has remained a happy companion. Please give it a sing-along listen and come back for some ideas on things we can do to help us become the people we want to be.

How to greet the new day

Our song begins with this prayer from Psalm 143: “Cause me to hear thy lovingkindness in the morning …” Isn’t that a wonderful thing to ask of God? Wouldn’t we rather start each day with a cheerful, “Good morning, Lord!” than a pained cry of, “Good Lord, it’s morning!”?

We can pray as the Psalmist did for God to partner with us to get our days started with Him. God is faithful. If we will “show up” every morning, He will meet us and show us His loving kindness. How can we meet with Him in the morning? One of the best ways is to set aside time each morning to read God’s Word and pray. It is up to you and Him how much time to spend. Five minutes would be lots better than no time at all. You might find a half hour would be delicious.

The time will get used one way or another. Let’s give God — and ourselves — enough time to hear His loving kindness — and even, as the Psalm and song say, enough time to “know the way wherein [we] should walk”. As we do this, we find our trust in Him grows, and all the more we will be lifting our souls unto Him.

So much more in this Psalm

Where would we be without the Psalms?!? They thrill and bless and feed us at every phase of our lives as we continue to grow and get to know God. The more crazy the world around us becomes, the brighter the Psalms light up for us.

When we read Psalm 143, we see a lot going on in the psalmist’s life. Our song pulls one verse out and helps us remember it. But read the whole Psalm and see how much richer our one verse becomes when we see “the rest of the story.”

Psalm 143

Hear my prayer, O Lord, give ear to my supplications: in thy faithfulness answer me, and in thy righteousness.
And enter not into judgment with thy servant: for in thy sight shall no man living be justified.
For the enemy hath persecuted my soul; he hath smitten my life down to the ground; he hath made me to dwell in darkness, as those that have been long dead.
Therefore is my spirit overwhelmed within me; my heart within me is desolate.
I remember the days of old; I meditate on all thy works; I muse on the work of thy hands.
I stretch forth my hands unto thee: my soul thirsteth after thee, as a thirsty land. Selah.
Hear me speedily, O Lord: my spirit faileth: hide not thy face from me, lest I be like unto them that go down into the pit.
Cause me to hear thy lovingkindness in the morning; for in thee do I trust: cause me to know the way wherein I should walk; for I lift up my soul unto thee.
Deliver me, O Lord, from mine enemies: I flee unto thee to hide me.
Teach me to do thy will; for thou art my God: thy spirit is good; lead me into the land of uprightness.
Quicken me, O Lord, for thy name’s sake: for thy righteousness’ sake bring my soul out of trouble.
And of thy mercy cut off mine enemies, and destroy all them that afflict my soul: for I am thy servant.

Good habits for good mornings

Good habits are good servants to help us become the kind of people we’d like to be. I was recently introduced to a book I am happy to recommend. It presents simple but powerful tips on forming good habits and weeding out bad ones. The book is called “Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones” authored by James Clear. Millions of copies have been printed, so you should be able to find it new or used, in print and audio, in bookstores and libraries.

What a wonderful habit to start our days with the Lord! The Psalms are a great place to read to connect with God’s thoughts and help us learn prayer and praise — and even to learn wherein we should walk. The more we decorate the living room of our minds with words like those in Psalm 143, the more we’ll find ourselves saying with joy and confidence as the Psalmist did, “In Thee do I trust.”

God bless you lots!
–Dale R.

LYRICS – In Thee Do I Trust
Song by Anne Stoutenburgh Mason & Dale Reichel (1976)

Chorus:
Cause me to hear Thy loving kindness in the morning
In Thee do I trust, in Thee do I trust
Cause me to know the way wherein I should walk
And I lift up my soul unto Thee

1. Sometimes I was happy, sometimes I was sad
Flippin’ in and out of ev’ry boogie trippin’ fad
Sometimes high and sometimes low,
I never knew which way to go
But now I know You’re the one to follow so…

Chorus:
Cause me to hear Thy loving kindness in the morning
In Thee do I trust, in Thee do I trust
Cause me to know the way wherein I should walk
And I lift up my soul unto Thee

Bridge:
In Thee do I trust, in Thee do I trust
For ev’ryone that’s ever come along
You’re the only one never done me wrong
Cause me to hear Thy loving kindness in the morning
In Thee do I trust

2. From darkness all around me, You drew me into light
You healed my heart, set me free and clothed me with Your might
Your word is now my guidance and I know just where to go
Yes I know, You’re the one to follow, so…

Chorus:
Cause me to hear Thy loving kindness in the morning
In Thee do I trust, in Thee do I trust
Cause me to know the way wherein I should walk
And I lift up my soul unto Thee

Bridge:
In Thee do I trust, in Thee do I trust
For ev’ryone that’s ever come along
You’re the only one that’s never done me wrong
Cause me to hear Your loving kindness in the morning
In Thee do I trust
In Thee do I trust
In Thee do I trust.

Let’s stay in touch

Each time I post a new song and lesson here I send a brief, cheerful note to friends of this song site. The note gives a quick description of the song and lesson along with a link to the new song’s page. It is super-easy for you to get a note from me, too. Just click the green “Song of the Week” button below and you are almost there.

To sweeten the deal, you will also get instant access to the “Music Box” where I put all the free resources and downloads that go along with these song pages. Check it out now! Good stuff. (Side note — I still post announcements on social media, too, even though I have learned it is terribly unreliable at getting the message out and keeping us connected. Email gets that job done where social media fails. We do well to connect this way, and avoid getting throttled by social media.)

Share your wisdom with other readers ...

Please feel free to add your thoughts to this conversation in the “Leave a reply” spot below.

First published May 23, 2019. New recording and revised article posted January 20, 2024