Seek To Dwell
Psalm 27:4 ESV lays out a central prayer of abiding, saying, “One thing have I asked of the Lord, that will I seek after: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to inquire in his temple.”
The cares and concerns of life constantly demand our attention. More than that, the constant connectedness of our digital world consumes our focus as much as we allow it. Showing up to prayer and worship requires considerable effort if we want to quiet our hearts and minds before the Lord.
It is one thing to set aside all distractions for a moment of prayer and connection with God. It is another thing to aim our lives toward a place of holy communion. This is the kind of seeking David shows us in Psalm 27.
There is such a thing as a life dwelling in the presence of God. There is an invitation to live constantly before the greatness and beauty of God. There is a place for God’s people in his holy temple of prayer and seeking.
Psalm 27 describes a life surrounded on every side by enemies yet confident in the goodness of the Lord. David expresses his utter abandonment by everyone around him, from his own family to his sure enemies. Yet through all of this, he remains steadfast in his pursuit of the throne of God.
God's beauty, presence, and power are our anchors in all things, found only in the abandonment of every other source of hope. Remember that David prays for just one thing: to behold God and to see him rightly. To have God’s ear is better than any earthly power or protection. To see God’s beauty and to seek out his goodness is a greater comfort than any earthly security.
Suppose we see ourselves caught up in a spiritual battle like Paul described in Ephesians 6:12 ESV. We might better understand the significance of Psalm 27. Paul writes in Ephesians, “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.”
With this in mind, we ought to cling to God's abiding presence and power. I think discipline and routine are helpful in developing a prayer life with God, but below all of that must lie a conviction of faith. We must believe that our greatest source of hope and security is found in the presence of God. Furthermore, we must trust that God has invited us to such a relationship. If God has invited us to seek and encounter him, then we must not settle for a life of spiritual blindness.
Take up the mantle of David. Open your heart to desire God’s glory above all other things. Through faith, seek a dwelling place in the house of God. Come, behold the beauty of God.
