SCRIPTURE
Psalm 27:4 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.
DEVOTION
A few weeks ago, I flipped open my Bible, unsure of where it would land. It opened to Psalm 27:4. Coincidently (or not…), this is one of my favourite passages. It was the passage I prayed as I got baptised, it’s one I know off by heart and one I’ve spent time meditating on over the years.
But when I saw it that day, the Lord showed it to me in a new and deeply profound way.
“One thing I ask from the Lord, this only do I seek…”
“Is that true of me?” I felt my heart question.
Do I truly only ask to seek God for that one thing – for the pleasure of dwelling in His presence?
The honest answer is no.
For I also seek recognition, affirmation, consolation, comfort, admiration, and so much more on a daily basis. I also ask for the things my heart desires: a relationship, healing, salvations, peace, finances, joy, and strength.
At that moment, Psalm 27:4 felt like a mirror… and it was brutally clear that I am after many things, not one.
It wasn’t that I felt the Lord condemning me for seeking and asking for those things. However, what He showed me, dear friend, was that my pursuit for all of these things had surpassed my pursuit for God Himself.
I was looking more to God’s hands than to God’s heart. I was after what He could give me rather than being after Him and Him alone.
I was then reminded of Matthew 6, where Jesus tells His disciples that they aren’t to worry about their lives, about what they will eat, what they will drink or what they will wear. He concludes by saying this in verses 32-33, “For the pagans run after all these things (food, drink, clothing), and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But SEEK FIRST his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.”
When our pursuit of God comes first, in Him, we will find – and receive – everything we need, dear friend.
Jumping back to Psalm 27:4, what comprises this “one thing”? In our pursuit of God, what are we to seek and to ask for?
1. To Be with God at Every Moment
“… that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life”
At the point when King David was writing this psalm, a temple for God had not yet been built. So, David wasn’t talking about wanting to forever be in a physical house of the Lord.
He was saying that he longed to be surrounded with God’s presence at all times; and to be enclosed with the holiness of God.
Dear friend, do we desire to be surrounded with God’s presence at all times?
2. To Behold God’s Beauty
“… to gaze on the beauty of the Lord”
The Hebrew word for ‘beauty’ is no’am, but it is not easily conveyed by just one English word. It can also mean ‘sweetness’, ‘pleasantness’, ‘friendliness’, ‘graciousness’, ‘goodness’, ‘loveliness’, ‘splendour’, or ‘delightfulness’.
Dear friend, when we picture God, when we gaze upon Him, is this what we see? Are we captured by His marvellous beauty and splendour?
3. To Intentionally Take Pleasure in God
“… to seek Him in His temple”
When we approach God, do we intentionally take time to delight in Him? Do we seek to meditate on who He is?
David longed to do this. He longed to commune with God intentionally and to take pleasure in Him. Will we?
Come, dear friend, let us ask God for just one thing today… that we may dwell and delight in Him.
REFLECTION QUESTIONS:
What do you seek today?
- To be with God at every moment.
- To behold God’s beauty.
- To intentionally take pleasure in God.
- OTHER
PRAYER
Lord God, You are so beautiful. Your beauty, majesty, and splendour amaze me. There is nowhere I would rather be than in Your presence, encircled by Your holiness.
Lord, I know that I tend to seek and to ask for more than just this one thing of dwelling in Your presence. I lay all of that seeking and all of that asking down, knowing that You are the one I am to seek first.
Lord, may my heart yearn more for You and less for what You can do or give to me. I long to delight in You and in You alone. I long to be with You at every moment. I long to behold Your beauty.
All my affection, all my devotion, poured out over You.
In Jesus’ name, amen.
PRAYER POINTERS
Pray for this one desire to be the desire of your church and its congregation today. Pray that, above all, they would desire this one thing of dwelling with God.
