Psalm 63

A psalm of David. When he was in the Desert of Judah.

1 O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee: my soul thirsts for thee, my flesh longs for thee in a dry and thirsty land, where no water is.

2 To see thy power and thy glory, so as I have seen thee in the sanctuary.

3 Because thy loving-kindness is better than life, my lips shall praise thee.

4 Thus will I bless thee while I live: I will lift up my hands in thy name.

5 My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness; and my mouth shall praise thee with joyful lips:

6 When I remember thee upon my bed and meditate on thee in the night watches.

7 Because thou hast been my help, therefore in the shadow of thy wings will I rejoice.

8 My soul follows hard after thee: thy right hand upholds me.

9 But those that seek my soul, to destroy it, shall go into the lower parts of the earth.

10 They shall fall by the sword: they shall be a portion for foxes.

11 But the king shall rejoice in God; every one that swears by him shall glory: but the mouth of them that speak lies shall be stopped. (KJV)

Matthew chapter 4 gives us a picture of Christ in the wilderness, which we will all face at one point in our walk with Christ on this earth. It is a time in which we cannot feel the presence of God in our life and the environment around us is very harsh. As I was watching the Fellowship of the Ring last night the scene where Boromir is dying in Aragorn’s arms and recalling the beauty of the halls of Minas Tirith came to mind as I read verse two. Christ knew the beauty of the city of God. He knew the power and glory of God. It was this time of reflecting on God’s Word and the angels that gave him comfort during an experience that help him make it through the desert. David statements in verse two “I have seen you in the sanctuary and beheld your power and your glory” reveals that he too was looking at past experiences. He probably recalls the victories with the battles he had with lions and bears when watching his father’s herds in the wilderness. He probably recalls his victory over Goliath and the Philistines.

But most of all it was probably the peace that overcame him when in the presence of God, he would worship his Lord with others in the sanctuary. It was probably the great songs and hymns that David had learned as a youth that he recalled during these desert times. As I look back to the past, it is not the sermons I recall, but the great hymns and praise songs that come to mind. Just remember when you are in dark times reflect on how God has delivered you in the past and the peace that came from your praises to him for these victories.

I started a new devotional today written by Max Lucado titled Grace for the Moment. His Introduction to this devotional is title Each Day. As I start to study this used book, I realized that the person before me only made it to page thirty-two. However, there seem to be a hunger in this person’s life to know God and his plan for their life. We all seem to make great plans to get back on a path to God when we go through difficulties in our life; however, as soon as the crisis is over, we turn back to our old ways. The words of advice that Max Lucado gives seems to echo the words that David writes in verse one of this Psalm “I seek you, my soul thirsts for you, and my body longs for you”. Max Lucado’s introduction (Each Day) to devotional gives direction to our life. The key to facing each day is making the right choices. These choices are also the way of God wants us to conduct our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. And the best way to start each day is by reading and then hiding God’s Word in your heart.