How lovely is your dwelling place, Lord Almighty! My soul yearns, even faints, for the courts of the Lord; my heart and my flesh cry out for the living God.
Psalm 84:1–2
Have you ever been so in love with someone that just being near them is a thrill? Suddenly, the places and things connected to that person become precious to you. The house they live in or the scent of their perfume or even the clothes they wear may become precious to you simply because they belong to them. That is how the author of Psalm 84 feels about the Lord.
Psalm 84 begins with praise for the dwelling place of God. The psalmist says that God’s dwelling place, the temple that Solomon built, is lovely. In fact, his soul yearns and even faints to enter the courts of God’s house. His heart and his flesh cry out for the living God.
Don’t miss that. The psalmist’s desire isn’t to go to church… it’s to go to the place where God is. Yes, Solomon’s temple was glorious, but what the psalmist longs for isn’t pretty buildings or beautiful ceremonies… it’s God Himself. He longs to enter into God’s presence.
During this time in the Old Testament, God’s presence was especially concentrated and located within the temple, in Jerusalem. That was the place God’s people went to meet with God, to enter His presence. And this psalmist is so in love with the Lord that he longs to enter God’s presence in that special place.
Do you? Are you this eager not to come to church and see your friends but to enter into God’s presence… to sing His praise… to bow at His feet in worship? Do you long to get up early and have a personal time of worship with Him?
You see, as modern Christians we have a privilege that this psalmist did not have. He had to travel to Jerusalem to be where God’s presence was specially focused. But we carry God with us everywhere we go. Christians have the Holy Spirit living inside us. We don’t have to go anywhere to meet with Him. All we have to do is quiet ourselves and the noise around us and seek Him.
But do you desire Him enough to do that? Is God this precious to you? Are you this in love with Him? Do you derive this much joy from His presence?
For most of us the sad answer is... no. Ask the Lord right now to help you love Him more. Commit, right now, to think more about how precious He is and not to take the privilege of His presence for granted. Stir your love for Him by setting aside a regular time to spend alone with Him. And don’t just read your Bible during that time, but spend a portion of it simply loving and worshiping your God.
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