Psalm 27: 1-6
1 The LORD is my light and my salvation—
whom shall I fear?
The LORD is the stronghold of my life—
of whom shall I be afraid?
2 When the wicked advance against me
to devour[a] me,
it is my enemies and my foes
who will stumble and fall.
3 Though an army besiege me,
my heart will not fear;
though war break out against me,
even then I will be confident.
4 One thing I ask from the LORD,
this only do I seek:
that I may dwell in the house of the LORD
all the days of my life,
to gaze on the beauty of the LORD
and to seek him in his temple.
5 For in the day of trouble
he will keep me safe in his dwelling;
he will hide me in the shelter of his sacred tent
and set me high upon a rock.
6 Then my head will be exalted
above the enemies who surround me;
at his sacred tent I will sacrifice with shouts of joy;
I will sing and make music to the LORD.
My reading plan has me reading through about a Psalm or half of one a day. I’m gaining a much better appreciation for them than I’ve had before. They offer an excellent window into both the character of God and into what the life of a believer is like.
What is interesting to me is verse 4. What I find interesting from it is this; in asking to essentially live in the presence of God for his whole life, the psalmist is in many ways asking for everything. Let me explain.
By living with God he gains protection. Anything that comes against him has to go through God to get there. This doesn’t mean that every enemy or trial will be swept away from him before it gets there. It means that they are all literally directly from the hand of God. Nothing in this world changes a man like pain. Pain is, perhaps, the swiftest teacher there is. Don’t get me wrong, pain sucks. But if it comes from God then “(what) should I fear? Of (what) should I be afraid?” Granted, the correct answer is pain. But if it comes from God there is purpose there. There is meaning to it, and we can withstand any “how” as long as we know there is a “why.”
By living with God, the psalmist gains wisdom. I’ve had the pleasure of having a family of intelligent and (for the most part) wise people. You cannot live with a person, and love them, and not listen to what they have to say. By being near someone who is wiser than you, you grow, unless you actively work against it. He also gains insight into himself. There is nothing like living with someone and having to deal with their crap to teach you about yourself.
He gains blessing as well. I don’t know if you’ve ever gotten a really thoughtful gift or not, but it’s one of the most pleasant things a person can experience. Here is why. It means, not only that the gift giver knows you (which is great in and of itself) it means that they are thinking of you when you aren’t actually there, when they don’t have to. Now, who knows you better than God? How loves you more than Him? Now, who do you think will give better gifts than Him?
I could go on, but I’m sleepy and I need to get up tomorrow. I hope you had a merry Christmas and will have a happy new year.
