Wednesday, December
13, 2017
The one thing I ask
of the Lord—the thing I seek most—is to live in the house of the Lord all
the days of my life, delighting in the Lord’s perfections and meditating
in his Temple. For he will conceal me
there when troubles come; he will hide me in his sanctuary. He will place me out of reach on a high rock. Then I will hold my head high above my
enemies who surround me. At his
sanctuary I will offer sacrifices with shouts of joy, singing and praising
the Lord with music. Hear me
as I pray, O Lord. Be merciful and
answer me! My heart has heard you say,
“Come and talk with me.” And my heart
responds, “Lord, I am coming.” Do not
turn your back on me. Do not reject your
servant in anger. You have always been
my helper. Don’t leave me now; don’t
abandon me, O God of my salvation! Even
if my father and mother abandon me, the Lord will hold me close. Teach me how to live, O Lord. Lead me along the right path, for my enemies
are waiting for me. Do not let me fall
into their hands. For they accuse me of
things I’ve never done; with every breath they threaten me with violence. Yet I am confident I will see the Lord’s
goodness while I am here in the land of the living. Wait patiently for the Lord. Be brave and courageous. Yes, wait patiently for the Lord.
Psalm 27:4-14(NLT)
David’s heart-prayer in this Psalm is the rambling of a soul struggling
to make sense between the glories and joy of heaven and the troubles that swamp
him here on earth. And while the prayer explores
back and forth like a spelunker trying to find the slightest bit of light to
lead him out of the cave’s darkness, there is a theme you cannot miss; David is
certain his heart belongs to God.
The experiences of joyful worship (shouts of joy, singing and praising
the Lord with music) are just that – moments of unbridled worship and expressions
of love for God. But the heart that
offers such praise is only genuinely able to worship that way when the bridge
away from God’s presence has been burned.
David has heard the call of God to come and talk with me and his immediate response is o Lamb of God, I come.
(Reading this Psalm is like watching the end of a Billy
Graham crusade.)
The final phrases of this Psalm are the same approach to living that
captured my heart many years ago:
Wait patiently for the Lord. Be brave and courageous. Yes, wait patiently for the Lord.
It’s not that I haven’t made mistakes with this. There have been times of running ahead of the
Lord, not waiting. There have been times
of fear and the temptation to make cowardly choices. But in all such times, even when I trembled
over what might be a wrong decision, a deep breath and trusting God have never
let me down.
For You
Today
When
you don’t know what to do, and can’t muster up anything to say that sounds
remotely intelligent, safe, or doable…throw your lot in with King David, a
fellow traveler and sinner:
All the days of my life, O Lamb, I come to you!
And,
by the way, a better time to do that is when things are going well! Think what God can do with you when that face
already has a smile on it!
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