Scripture: Psalm 84
1 How lovely is your dwelling place,
Lord Almighty!
2 My soul yearns, even faints,
for the courts of the Lord;
my heart and my flesh cry out
for the living God.
3 Even the sparrow has found a home,
and the swallow a nest for herself,
where she may have her young—
a place near your altar,
Lord Almighty, my King and my God.
4 Blessed are those who dwell in your house;
they are ever praising you.[c]
5 Blessed are those whose strength is in you,
whose hearts are set on pilgrimage.
6 As they pass through the Valley of Baka,
they make it a place of springs;
the autumn rains also cover it with pools.[d]
7 They go from strength to strength,
till each appears before God in Zion.
8 Hear my prayer, Lord God Almighty;
listen to me, God of Jacob.
9 Look on our shield,[e] O God;
look with favor on your anointed one.
10 Better is one day in your courts
than a thousand elsewhere;
I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God
than dwell in the tents of the wicked.
11 For the Lord God is a sun and shield;
the Lord bestows favor and honor;
no good thing does he withhold
from those whose walk is blameless.
12 Lord Almighty,
blessed is the one who trusts in you.
Today's Meditation:
The Psalmist in this passage, probably a temple singer or chorister, expresses deep longing, even love, to be in God’s house, the temple, where for him God dwelt.
Where is the temple for us? Paul tells us in Corinthians that WE are now individually and collectively God’s temple. (1 Cor. 3:16 and 6:19)
The words in verse 10, “Better is one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere”, remind us that how we spend our time is our choice and, at the same time, affects the kind of people we become.
The second phrase in verse 10, “I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God”, is not so much about the function of a doorkeeper but more about it just being better to be in God’s house, even if only at the door as opposed to anything else.
How do we act on this? By focusing on individually spending time with Christ and collectively with God’s people as and when we can.
May this be our desire and focus this Lenten season.
Prayer:
Loving God, may we be open to your working in us to produce a love for both spending time with Christ and your people. Amen.
Howard Davidson