Sometimes God takes me on a tangent when I read His Word. I will read a passage and it triggers something in me that causes me to chase down a thought or two that may or may not be related to the passage at hand.

Here is the video link:

Psalm 27:4-13

The audio links for Spotify and iTunes are to the right.

Here is the transcript used to produce today’s podcast:

Obedience

Seeking God’s Presence

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.

David wanted desperately to build the Temple, but God said no. But he still planned for it, dreamed about it, but was obedient to God and left it for his son Solomon to build after he was gone. Though his dream of actually building the Temple would be unrealized, he still dreamed about how wonderful it would be to walk into the Presence of the Lord in His House/Temple.

I know how he feels. I have dreamed about the day when I see Jesus face to face. I have had several dreams over the years where I either sat with Jesus or interacted with Him in some way. In every case I would wake after the dream full of awe and wonder. I can understand David’s desire here.

It occurs to me that this is also not just David looking forward to the day when he is with the Lord, but is also his desire for the felt presence of the Lord in THIS life, to see God everywhere around him… TODAY. Oh, man, do I want that.

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.

Being in the Presence of the Lord brings benefits. There is protection in His Presence. There is victory in His Presence. Endless reasons to celebrate our God and our salvation. Think about this for a moment… what is the greatest weapon the enemy of our souls can wield in his opposition to us? Death. We can (and eventually will) be struck down in battle or via infirmity – that is guaranteed. But the very second that happens, we will be in the Presence of our God, celebrating life forever with the One Who has saved us, enjoying every benefit of being with Him, some of which we only dreamed about.

One of the amazing things about a devotional approach to reading the Bible, are the ancillary thoughts that spring up in my brain which may or may NOT be directly connected to the main thought of the passage I am reading. What follows is one of those thoughts as it related to obedience. I was thinking about obedience as I read about David’s desire to be where God is. The thought “Being where God is, makes me want to do what God wants” was my springboard to the following. I think God wants me to think about obedience…. hmmmm….

“Play-acting” foreshadows the future reality

2 Corinthians 5

1 For we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands. 2 Meanwhile we groan, longing to be clothed instead with our heavenly dwelling, 3 because when we are clothed, we will not be found naked. 4 For while we are in this tent, we groan and are burdened, because we do not wish to be unclothed but to be clothed instead with our heavenly dwelling, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. 5 Now the one who has fashioned us for this very purpose is God, who has given us the Spirit as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.

6 Therefore we are always confident and know that as long as we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord. 7 For we live by faith, not by sight. 8 We are confident, I say, and would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord. 9 So we make it our goal to please him, whether we are at home in the body or away from it. 10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each of us may receive what is due us for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.

In our dreaming of the life to come, we strive for obedience in the life we live now. Sometimes my “walking in faith” resembles a child playing pretend. That child uses their imagination to pretend they are grownup. They are looking forward to being “grown up”, and play-acting who and what they think that looks like. That’s me. My obedience looks like a child “play-acting”. Just as my children play-acted pretending to be myself or my wife, my obedience is my striving – like a child strives – to act like Jesus. As I look at my grownup children now, I realize that much of their “play-acting” was pretty accurate in its depiction of the adult they would become. Our obedience now is, in fact, a foreshadowing and a celebration of that future guaranteed life in the realized Presence of our God. 

Here is another thought related to Paul’s comments… our obedience to God demonstrates to God our intentions toward Him, but it also demonstrates to the world that THIS world is not our home. Our fealty is to the God of the Universe, not the “god of this world (Satan).” Every time we obey God, we are reflecting Him to the world around us.

Pausing to pray about his Personal life?

7 Hear my voice when I call, Lord;
    be merciful to me and answer me.

8 My heart says of you, “Seek his face!”
    Your face, Lord, I will seek.

9 Do not hide your face from me,
    do not turn your servant away in anger;
    you have been my helper.
Do not reject me or forsake me,
    God my Savior.

When I read this, I am wondering if these verses are David turning his focus from his military enemies (see verses 1-3) to his personal life. His military life was a successful one. His personal life, not so much. Multiple wives, rebellious children… what a mess. One of his sons actually ripped the kingdom from his father’s hands briefly. 

I get the sense that this was weighing on David. I very much know what this feels like. One area of your life is going swimmingly, while your personal life is headed for a dumpster fire. David was a successful military leader, but was experiencing huge issues in his family. I believe this is supported in the remaining verses.:

10 Though my father and mother forsake me,
    the Lord will receive me.

I know David’s brothers treated him with scorn. I also know that David’s father didn’t think it was worthwhile for David to come in from herding the sheep to see the prophet Samuel. Could this family dynamic be demonstrated in this verse? And if his own father wasn’t in his corner, that might explain David’s failure as a father as well. Just a thought.

11 Teach me your way, Lord;
    lead me in a straight path
    because of my oppressors.

12 Do not turn me over to the desire of my foes,
    for false witnesses rise up against me,
    spouting malicious accusations.

“…false witnesses spouting malicious accusations…” provides further proof that David has switched from the topic of military success (verses 1-3) to his personal life. Armies do not “spout malicious accusations.” If you read the story of David you will realize that there was much intrigue within his palace. Advisors, generals, even his sons, were conspiring at one time or another, against him. I bet he sometimes felt safer on the battlefield than at his own home.

13 I remain confident of this:
    I will see the goodness of the Lord
    in the land of the living.

14 Wait for the Lord;
    be strong and take heart
    and wait for the Lord.

Through it all, the wars abroad and the wars in his own home, THIS was David’s core thought and attitude. He was confident that the Lord would lead and guide him through all of his struggles.

In fact, this could very well become MY personal anthem. In my family I have the reputation of being pretty unflappable. In the face of disaster, I have been told that I appear to be calm – a tower of strength. That’s because they can’t see the terror in my heart! The reason I appear so calm (on the outside!) is because like David,

 I remain confident of this:
    I will see the goodness of the Lord
    in the land of the living.

I am supremely confident in God’s goodness. I have become convinced that 

“…goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life…”

Making it through today became possible when I realized the reality of the eternal goodness and mercy of God. Today’s hardships can be endured because I absolutely KNOW that He is good. He is merciful. He is my all in all.

David saw it. I see it. God is good.

Be Blessed!

Paige