A Day in His Courts
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Psalm 84:10-12
10. For a day in thy courts is better than a thousand elsewhere. I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of wickedness. 11. For the Lord God is a sun and shield; he bestows favor and honor. No good thing does the Lord withhold from those who walk uprightly. 12. O Lord of hosts, blessed is the man who trusts in thee!
This is such a beautiful psalm! I have a cd with this psalm set to music and every time I play it, I continue to hum it the whole day. A day in God’s courts—one day in heaven will be better than the best day we have ever had or can ever imagine on earth. Wow! Better than the birth of my two children? Better than my 25th wedding anniversary? Better than a hot air balloon ride? Better than, well . . . anything!? Anything!
The Lord is a sun and shield. His love is what shines upon us. This reminds me of the bright light of God’s presence with Moses. The glowing face of God shines so brightly we cannot look upon it—even with our eyes closed it will be too bright to behold! Just as we cannot look at the sun directly for too long without going blind, we will not be able to behold God’s face—it will be too awesome for us to see—literally, with our eyes, but also with our minds and hearts.
God is our shield against the forces of evil in this world. Complete reliance upon His promise, absolute dependence upon His gift of grace—only through these will we succeed in achieving the perfection we seek in heaven with our God. God withholds nothing from us—now or in the future when we walk in His ways. And only by going to Him and trusting in Him will we approach that perfection. Blessed are we when we trust in Him. We can ride out the storms of life through His strength. We can stay on course, with Him as our guide.
A doorkeeper, though humble, has an important job. He stands at the door of the tabernacle. He doesn’t go into the holiest of places, but stands at them, helping others going in. This lowly lot in life, this simple, humble task, if it allows and affords a physical closeness to God, is enough—more than enough for us! To have that intimacy affords us a blessedness only possible through closeness to God and walking in His ways.
Better, indeed is one day in God’s presence than a thousand anywhere else! One instant, one millisecond! Oh, how wonderful to be in His presence. I long for His courtyard! I would rather be the doorkeeper for His house than live in luxury and ease! How lovely, indeed is His dwelling place. That I could be a sparrow and fly so close to His presence!
I hope you spend today yearning for His courts, rejoicing that He has prepared a place for us in His house in heaven.
Mary
