“I have seen you in the sanctuary
and beheld your power and your glory.”
Psalm 63:2
David opens Psalm 63 by declaring who God is and who He is to him personally:
“O God, you are my God…”
Not only is He the great God of the universe, but He is personal to me. He is my God.
Using the imagery of thirst, David declares his desire for God: nothing and no one else can satisfy his longing, the world offers only dryness and weariness. There is no water in the land, David says in Psalm 63:1.
The sanctuary – the presence of God – is the oasis in the world’s desert.
It was true then, and it’s still true today.
David comes to the sanctuary and is rewarded: He sees God. He beholds God’s power and His glory. We find this same glorious reward when we seek Him out today:
You will seek me and find me when
you seek me with all your heart.
Jeremiah 29:13… those who seek me find me.
Proverbs 8:17bCome near to God and he will come near to you.
James 4:8aRemain in me, as I also remain in you…
John 15:4aYou make known to me the path of life;
you will fill me with joy in your presence,
with eternal pleasures at your right hand.
Psalm 16:11
Life in this world brings dryness and weariness. Whether today’s challenge is chemotherapy or a clogged drain, a parent with dementia or a teenager with an attitude, or perhaps a lost job or just a lost set of keys, life brings hardship. But in Him, we can survive hard things … do hard things … and glorify God in hard things.
Life is exhausting, but in Him we can “run and not grow weary.” (Isaiah 40:31)
Life will bring trouble, but in Him we can have peace. (John 16:33)
Life brings confusion and oppression, but understanding comes in His presence. (Psalm 73:16-17)
When our cup is empty, we can – we must – come to God to fill it. He is the Living Water. Trudging through the challenges of life leaves us parched, dehydrated, and thirsty. I carry my cup to the mall, to my own dinner table, to the committee meeting, to the bookstore, to the ocean or the mountains. Wherever we find ourselves, we can come to Him with our cup held out … and time after time, He fills it to overflowing.
We may mistakenly look to people and places to fill our cups. Some may try eating, drinking, or spending their way to a full cup. But our real thirst can only be quenched by Him.
Come to the sanctuary. Come to Him. Come see His power and His glory. Allow it to overwhelm, consume, and thrill you. The great God of the universe, the creator of the world and everything in it, the author and perfecter of our salvation, the God of all power and glory … knows you and loves you. This love is better than anything – any thrill, high, or reward the world can offer.
His love is better. It is higher, deeper, wider. It is eternal. May we declare with David: “Your love is better than life.” When we behold Him, when we see His power and glory, when we are drenched in His love that is better than anything in this life, our lips will – indeed, they must – overflow with praise:
“Because your love is better than life,
my lips will glorify you.”
Psalm 62:3
Let’s covenant together in this new year to come to Him, our sanctuary, every day. Like David so many years ago, let’s embrace the timeless truth that only He can quench our thirst. Let us enter His sanctuary by reading His Word, abiding in His presence, and holding our cup up to Him for filling. Let’s be wowed by His power and His glory. Let’s allow Him to shower us with His love and overwhelm us with His presence. And let us be women of God, who respond by glorifying Him in every task, every action, every word.
Because He is worthy.
Because His love is better – greater, more powerful, more glorious than anything this world can offer.
O God, you are my God…your love is better than life.
In this week’s devotional video, Laura unpacks a verse that, while familiar to many of us, may actually mean more than we thought. We invite you to read Romans 3:23, and then listen to Laura’s teaching and allow yourself to be challenged!
