Sunday,
March 25, 2007 
Psalm 84:2
My soul longs,
indeed it faints
for the courts of the LORD.
Prayer
Nothing in life is sweeter than Your
presence. Nothing gives me greater peace. Nothing fulfills
me more than being with You. Nowhere else do I feel truly
safe. When I'm consciously with You – for, indeed, in a sense I'm always with
You because You're always with me, but when I'm aware of
You – I can feel my burdens being lifted, my fears
subsiding, my sins losing their charm, my love for You growing.
Thank You, dear Lord, for making Yourself
known to me. Thank You for the freedom I have to draw near
to You. Thank You for Your Spirit, who dwells with me. Thank
You for being present to me when I gather with Your people.
Thank You for being my Rock, my Comfort, my Peace.
Postscript
When Psalm 84 was written, "the courts of
the LORD" were, quite literally, the courts of the temple
in Jerusalem. Today, of course, the temple stands no more.
For Christians, however, God's "temple" is with us in a variety
of ways. We naturally think of heaven as God's abode. Plus,
Jesus, above all, is the "temple" of God, God's presence
among us, the place where God dwells, through which we find
forgiveness and fellowship with God.
| |
 |
| |
The "courts" of the Lord? |
But in a very
real sense, God's "temple" is also the community of Christians
gathered, the place where the Spirit of God is present
and active. In his first letter to the Corinthians, the Apostle
Paul writes:
16 Do you not know that you
are God’s
temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you? 17 If anyone
destroys God’s temple, God will destroy that person.
For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple.
(1 Corinthians 3:16-17)
So when we yearn for the courts of the Lord
today, we're not just looking forward to heaven, or longing
for a deeper relationship with Christ. We're also looking
forward to joining with the people of God for worship, fellowship,
and mutual ministry. Here, indeed, God is present in His
"temple."
Comment?
If you would like to add a comment on this post, click here.
The Daily Psalm
The Daily Psalm is one of my devotional websites. Each day I put up a portion of a psalm, a prayer based on that text, and some additional input, like a brief commentary or a quotation.
|
