Psalm 27

One thing have I asked of the Lord that I will 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.

For he will hide me in his shelter in the day of trouble.

He will conceal me under the cover of his tent.

He will lift me high upon a rock.

Amen.

I have a picture in my living room.

There it is.

As you can see, it's looking out a window.

There's sunlit lawn and shrubs and trees in the background.

And then right outside the window, you can see another little tree

with a bird sitting on the branch singing away.

There's a, you can see the little like, I guess it's an oil lamp

and some glasses on the windowsill.

And then there's a page from, it looks like a page from a hymn book there.

Although it's just that blank, that sheet of paper with a pen and the ink beside it.

Like someone has just written it out or, yeah.

And there's lilies on the desk.

White.

And you can see there's a lot of like contrast of light and darkness in there.

The light is outside and coming into the darkness of the room and shining on that hymn.

So, the hymn is, you might guess, this is my father's world, which is what the painting is called.

We just sang it, but let me just read a couple of verses.

This is my father's world and to my listening ears, all nature sings and round me rings the music of the spheres.

This is my father's world, the birds their carols raise, the morning light, the lily white, declare their maker's praise.

So, yeah.

This hymn was written by a guy named Maltby Babcock, a Presbyterian minister in the late 1800s.

He was, when he was a young pastor, there he is.

When he was a young pastor up in upstate New York, right near Niagara Falls, and up near Lake Ontario there,

he would go for walks in the countryside, and apparently that's when he wrote this poem,

although it wasn't published until after he died in around 1900.

The poem had like 16 stanzas, two lines each, and so when it's said as a hymn,

they have to select some of the verses, the best known ones.

So, yeah, a very well-known hymn.

It celebrates creation bearing witness to God's reign and goodness and beauty and praising him.

It also talks about God speaking to us through creation.

There's the lines that we sang,

This is my father's world, he shines in all its fear, in the rustling grass I hear him pass.

He speaks to me everywhere.

You're probably familiar with this idea that God speaks to us through creation.

There's various passages in the Bible that speak about that, like Psalm 19,

saying that the heavens declare the glory of God.

In Romans 1, Paul says,

Ever since the creation of the world, God's eternal power and divine nature

have been understood through the things that he has made.

In Acts 14, Paul says that God has not left himself without a witness in doing good,

giving you rains from heaven and fruitful seasons,

and filling you with food and your hearts with joy.

In fact, in the Te Deum that we just prayed,

there was the line,

Heaven and earth are full of the majesty of your glory.

That's all great, but you're probably wondering,

what does this have to do with Psalm 27?

It doesn't talk about flowers and butterflies and cute furry creatures,

or even thunderstorms and sea monsters,

which the Bible says speak to us about God.

Although there are monsters, I guess, or monstrousness in this psalm,

talks about evildoers intent on devouring flesh,

armies, false witnesses.

It's obviously about someone in danger crying out to God for deliverance.

It seems a long way from like this dreamy pastor wandering through the countryside

or someone looking out the window at their pretty garden while sipping a cup of tea.

Well, so we'll look at the psalm,

and I'll see if I can connect it back to the view out the window and the hymn.

We're going to go through it verse by verse,

so if you have your Bible or your phone or whatever,

you can follow along.

There are Bibles here if you need them,

and we'll be looking at Psalm 27,

but let's just pray before we do that.

Father, we thank you that you are our light and our salvation,

our mighty fortress and our rock.

We need fear nobody and nothing,

but we want to have our holy fear of you.

We come to you and your word with sin-stained souls and darkened understanding,

and we thank you that in Jesus you have washed us clean

and are renewing our hearts and minds according to your will.

Please give me grace to speak the truth

and give us all wisdom, courage, and faith to hear you speak

and to live according to the truth of your gospel.

In Jesus' name, amen.

So the Psalms, we're doing a summer series on the Psalms.

The novice preacher is the one who's starting the series,

which seems a little off, but anyway,

this is like the, what do they call it, the pilot in a TV show,

and you don't know if it's going to be any good or not,

but anyway, so don't judge the rest of the series by this.

So anyway, so we'll be looking at the Psalms.

I'm not going to give a whole overview of them,

but as you know, you're probably familiar with them.

It's a collection of 150 poems or songs

that were part of the worship of the Jewish people

starting from the time of King David.

David, in the Psalms, a lot of them are attributed to David,

about half of them say of David or a Psalm of David

or something like that.

We don't really know what it means exactly when it says that,

but people think that, you know,

at least the kernel of a lot of the Psalms were written by him

or maybe even the whole Psalm.

But, you know, sometimes they're shaped by the later experiences

of the people of Israel.

But these are the things we know about David.

He was a skilled musician.

He was hired or he was brought to the court at first

when Saul was king

because Saul was being attacked by evil spirits

or an evil spirit from the Lord, actually, it says.

I don't know how that works.

But anyway, but David played music for him

to bring him peace and to calm his mind

and his soul.

So he was obviously played the lyre,

which is like a guitar kind of thing.

We know that he was a wild dancer.

In 2 Samuel chapter 6,

2 Samuel 6 · chapter mention

when they were bringing the ark back to Jerusalem

or to Jerusalem for the first time,

three times in that chapter,

his wild, crazy dancing is sort of vividly described.

We know that David put up a tent in Jerusalem

to accommodate the ark as a place of worship.

It was a sign of God's presence with his people.

In the next chapter, 2 Samuel chapter 7,

2 Samuel 7 · chapter mention

we see that David wanted to build a temple for God.

But through the prophet,

God told him that that job would be left to his son.

But if you read Chronicles,

we see that David helped in the preparation

for the building of the temple

by supplying a lot of materials,

and he planned out the liturgy

and the musical leadership of it.

So he was a passionate worshiper,

a dancer, and a poet.

Humanly speaking,

he was also violent

and promiscuous and deeply flawed.

But nevertheless, the Bible,

because of his humility and his contrition,

he's described as being a man after God's own heart.

So these are things we know about David,

who it said wrote this psalm.

So let's take a look at it

and what he says to us.

There are 14 verses,

and the books that I was reading,

commentaries and that kind of thing,

all see it as being divided into four sections.

I'm a musician,

and so when I sort of naturally go to musical

sort of ideas and images and concepts

that help me understand things sometimes,

and so when I was thinking of these four sections

in the psalm,

I thought of kind of like a symphony

or a sonata,

which is the same idea,

but just for one or two instruments,

where you've got a big piece of music

that's divided into four separate,

we call them movements.

So it's like four separate pieces of music,

but they come together

to form one artistic expression.

And as I was reading through this psalm,

it kind of struck me

that these four sections

kind of flow that way.

In a symphony,

you have the first and the last ones

are generally more energetic

and upbeat and loud

and positive feeling.

Generally speaking,

this is usually how it goes,

whereas the two in the middle

are a little slower,

especially the second movement

is more like reflective,

and then the third movement

is more like a dance,

actually, typically,

and then moves us to the last one,

which is, again,

energetic and upbeat.

So just indulge me a little here,

and we'll go through

the four movements of this psalm

and see if that helps us understand it.

So the first movement,

we meet the enemies, okay?

Verses one to three,

you can follow along.

The Lord is my light and my salvation.

Whom shall I fear?

The Lord is the stronghold of my life.

Of whom shall I be afraid?

There's evildoers assailing

to eat up my flesh,

adversaries and foes,

but when they do,

it's they who stumble and fall.

And even though an army

is encamped against me,

my heart shall not fear.

Though war rise against me,

yet I will be confident.

So obviously,

there's a tone of confidence

and trust in the Lord,

his light and his salvation.

At the same time,

obviously,

there is danger and opposition.

All right?

Why would he be talking about fear

unless there's something

to be afraid of?

And I think this is something

that we can all relate to,

this sense of danger and trouble,

which naturally leads to fear

and enemies.

Obviously, in the news,

we see there's actual wars

going on in the world

and in the cities,

there's violence in the streets,

in our homes,

maybe not in your home,

but obviously,

we're aware of situations

where there's violence

and conflict.

Perhaps you might be,

like the psalmist,

a victim of slander,

enemies speaking evil of you.

It could be that your enemy

is a disease

or something in your body,

in your mind,

in your spirit.

So David was familiar

with that idea

through his helping Saul

overcome that attack

from an evil spirit.

Maybe there's conflict

in your family.

Some people wonder

if this psalm

was about

when David's son,

Absalom,

rebelled against him

and tried to

take over the kingship.

Or perhaps it's your boss.

That can be an enemy

for some people.

I was just talking to people

at the eight o'clock service

and they were telling me

that one of them,

their boss had just resigned

and that was a good thing

because they had given them

a lot of trouble.

And David's boss,

Saul,

caused him a lot of trouble.

In fact,

he was intent

on killing him

even though David

was nothing but loyal

to him.

So we're not sure

what are the enemies

that are referred to here,

but it could be a neighbor.

David fought against

these neighboring nations

like the Philistines.

So I'm sure

there's different ways

that we can relate

to what the psalmist

is going through here.

But whatever is the enemy

that we're facing,

we know that the Lord,

the creator of the universe,

and the one

whose love

is steadfast and faithful

is our light

and our salvation.

He brings wisdom

and truth,

deliverance

and vindication.

Our life

is in his hands.

The more we realize

what he's done

for us in Jesus,

forgiving our sins

and winning us

eternal life,

triumphing over sin

and death

and the evil one,

we can enter

into the ringing confidence

of the psalmist

who knows that in God

we're more than conquerors.

This movement,

musically,

would be like a rousing,

maybe march

by Beethoven

or something like that,

exuberantly triumphing

over the threat

of war

and destruction.

The second movement,

starting at verse 4,

brings a tone

of peace

and stillness

and tranquility

as the psalmist

invites us

through his prayer

to God

for the one thing

that he desires

above all else,

to be in God's presence.

One thing

I ask of the Lord

that I will seek after,

to 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.

It's almost like

just this silence

comes in

and you're just

in this stillness,

gazing,

delighting in God

and inquiring,

that is,

seeking to learn

from God

and grow.

there's echoes here

of Psalm 23,

which is just

a few psalms before

in the Psalter

where David talks

about God

leading him

beside streams

of still water,

restoring his soul

and he talks

about at the end

of that

that he will dwell,

he's confident

of dwelling

in the house

of the Lord

all the days

of his life

and there are enemies

in Psalm 23

as well,

right?

You prepare a feast

before me

in the presence

of my enemies

so in spite

of the conflict

and the things

around us,

God,

when we enter

his presence

and fix our gaze

on him,

gives us this peace

and also

a sense

of protection,

deliverance

and grateful worship.

In Psalm 16,

11,

it says that

in God's presence

is fullness of joy.

Think of that

old hymn,

chorus,

turn your eyes

upon Jesus,

look full

in his wonderful face

and the things

of earth

will grow strangely dim

in the light

of his glory

and grace.

David

reiterates his love

for God's presence

by using five

different descriptions

of,

well,

going into

that holy place.

He talks about it

as a house

of the Lord,

a temple

which is

not necessarily

talking about

the temple

that eventually

Solomon built

but just a more

general idea.

It could also be

translated a palace.

It's a place

where a king

or a divinity

would live.

A house,

a temple,

a shelter,

a tent,

so shelter

is the idea

of being covered.

A tent

is more

the idea

of being

like a place

of hospitality

and welcome.

Like Abraham,

actually,

we've been reading

about him,

how he's pitched

his tent

and invited

strangers

to come in

with him.

And finally,

a rock,

so God's

presence,

God's house

is like a rock

or a fortress,

a safe,

strong place.

So,

we can sense

in this music,

if it was

set to music,

it would be

still and calm

and peaceful,

but also these notes

of joy and praise,

I will offer

in his tent

sacrifices

with shouts of joy,

singing and making

melody to the Lord.

There's a tone

of gratitude

for what God

has done.

I guess the question

is,

if it was David

who wrote this psalm,

this longing

to be in God's house,

is it meant

to be sort of

taken as a literal

thing

or

more of a

poetic expression

of wanting

to be in God's

presence?

I mean,

the tent

was there

in David's

lifetime

because he says

to Nathan,

the prophet,

you know,

look,

God's living

in a house

of tent,

but I'm in

a house

of cedar.

I mean,

he could have

moved into

the tent

if he wanted

to,

but,

and to,

you know,

I'm sure

that would have

been a nice

refuge for him

from all the

wars and battles

that he had

to deal with

and politics

and wives

and this kind

of thing.

And he longed

for peace

and justice,

a time when

God would put

things right.

And,

of course,

this hope

of justice

and peace

was developed

more and more

through the Old

Testament,

through the

prophets.

They envisaged

the holiness

of God

flooding the

nations

in a future

age of

righteousness.

But,

during David's

time,

the access

to the temple

and God's

holy place

was only

for those

who were made

richly clean

and priests

could only,

of course,

go into the

most holy

place.

But,

this idea

of him

offering

sacrifices

to God

as a king

actually

points us

to Jesus.

Often,

we use

that expression,

he's the

prophet,

priest,

and king.

And,

by his

sacrifice,

like he

says here,

I will offer

sacrifices.

And,

as we sort

of heard

in that

Hebrews

text,

Jesus

makes a

way for us

all to enter

into God's

presence and

dwell with him

forever.

Looking at

the cross,

we see his

beauty,

and following

him,

we can

inquire and

learn from

him,

meditate on

his life,

death,

and resurrection,

and we rest

on him as

the rock of

our salvation,

delighting in

his deliverance

and exalting

over our

enemies by

faith in

him.

This fourth

verse here,

one commentator

says about

that singleness

of purpose

and the

priorities within

that purpose,

that is,

to dwell in

the house

of the

Lord and

to inquire

of him.

He says it

is the

very essence

of worship

and of

discipleship.

And so I

invite you to

think about

that,

what it

means to

want to be

in God's

presence and

to delight

in him,

gaze on

him,

and inquire

of him.

It reminds

us actually of

Jesus when

he was a

child.

he spent

time in

the temple

and was

actually thought

that was the

natural place

for him to

be,

was surprised.

Remember when

his parents

said to him,

where were

you?

He said,

well,

where else

would I

be but in

my father's

house?

And it

says that he

was sat at

the feet of

the teachers

listening to

them and

asking them

questions.

And that's

what God

wants us to

do,

wants us to

spend time

with him,

whether it's

in his

word or

gathering in

Bible studies

or in

church.

The New

Testament,

of course,

says that we

are the

temple of

the Holy

Spirit,

so we

don't have

a temple

to go to

anymore,

but as we

gather with

each other

and by the

grace of

God,

the Holy

Spirit is

with us,

we can

spend time

with God

and sit

and learn

and,

yeah,

that's kind

of what we're

doing today,

right?

Gathering

together.

And so we

thank God

for Jesus

setting us

that example

and the

psalmist,

the essence

of worship

and of

discipleship.

That's the

second movement.

Third movement,

which I put

the title,

a hungry

heart

seeking rest

in God.

This is

verses 7

to 10.

So the

threat of

trouble is

returning here,

right?

We see it

in verse 7.

Hear,

O Lord,

when I cry

aloud,

be gracious

to me

and answer

me,

so he

needs help

from God.

But it's

tempered here

not so much

by this

ringing confidence

in the

opening section

but almost

a note of

contrition

and a

longing for

connection

with God

that seems

to be born

out of the

experience of

God's presence

that we just

saw in the

second section.

It's not really

clear why the

psalmist is

concerned that

God might

cast him

off or

forsake him.

But

he's

earnestly

seeking

God's

face but

he says

don't hide

your face

from me

which of

course is

his longing.

But we do

know that

in scripture

we see that

when people

behold the

holiness of

God and

his awesomeness

often the

response is

well a

kind of

holy fear.

Peter when

Jesus caught

that miraculous

catch of

fish he

fell at

his feet

and he

said go

away from

me Lord

for I am

a sinful

man.

Or in

Revelation

John

sees the

vision of

God

the glorified

Christ and

he falls at

his feet as

though dead.

And so

I think he

comes he

realizes that

to dwell in

God's presence

also means to

deal with

the sin in

his life.

Certainly

reading these

verses would

suggest that

when he's

talking about

the temple

in the second

section it's

more of a

poetic idea

because otherwise

he would still

be there right?

But now he's

back talking

about the

dangers that

he's experiencing

and the

trouble

but he

knows that

God is

faithful

and he

says even

if my

father and

mother have

forsaken me

but you can

also translate

it if my

father and

mother forsake

me yet the

Lord will

still take me

in.

This desperate

hunger for

God comes

from knowing

that no one

else but him

can save

and we're

utterly

dependent on

God's grace

for salvation.

Be gracious

and answer

me he

says.

Once again

we're pointed

to the cross

here when we

think about

Jesus on the

cross he was

utterly forsaken

by his

disciples,

his family,

he's thrown

completely on

the mercy of

God.

And as we

read he

cried aloud

to God

to the

one who's

able to

save him

from death

and was

heard because

of his

reverent

submission.

And God

did save

him.

At first he

descended into

hell of course

to take the

punishment for

our sins

but then he's

raised on

Easter Sunday.

He tasted

the depth of

what it meant

to be forsaken

by God

for our

sake.

But then

God delivers

him because

of his

righteousness.

This

sacrifice

and self

giving love

allows us

to seek

and see

God's

face.

To be

welcomed by

God into

our true

heavenly

home,

his presence

forever.

Not made

right by our

efforts but

by the

mercy and

faithfulness

of Christ.

So as I

said this

third movement

is like a

dance.

and I

see that

in sort

of the

way the

conversation

goes back

and forth.

You know,

you have

said,

Lord,

seek my

face.

My heart

says to

you,

your face,

Lord,

do I seek.

There's a

sort of

back and

forthness

and it

leads us

out of

that still

place into

more moving

forward in

life,

life,

which is

kind of

how the

third

movement

of a

symphony

works.

So,

finally,

fourth

section,

fourth

movement,

a

steadfast

obedience,

faithful and

courageous.

I guess

I'll read

these words.

Teach me

your way,

O Lord,

and lead

me on a

level path

because of

my enemies.

Give me

not up to

the will

of my

adversaries,

for false

witnesses

have risen

against me

and they

breathe out

violence.

I believe

that I

shall look

upon the

goodness of

the Lord

in the

land of

the living.

Wait for

the Lord.

Be strong

and let

your heart

take courage.

Wait for

the Lord.

One thing

we notice

here is a

movement in

who the

psalmist is

addressing.

So,

in the

first verse,

he's talking

to God,

praying that

he'll teach

him his

way,

which gets

back to

that

verse

four where

he talks

about inquiring

of the

Lord,

that theme

of discipleship.

So,

teach me

a way,

lead me

on the

path of

life.

So,

he's praying

to God

and then

he's sort

of talking

to himself

almost.

I believe,

he's just

reiterating

his faith,

I believe

that I

shall look

upon the

goodness

of the

Lord

in the

land of

the

living.

And then

thirdly,

he speaks

to other

people.

Wait for

the Lord.

Be strong.

So,

there's a

movement

through here

out of

what God

has done

in him

and God's

teaching him

to exhorting

other people

to that

faith.

But yeah,

there's a

sense of

almost like

a march,

like moving

forward in

life.

what else

was I

going to

say about

this?

Oh yeah,

so the

enemies,

so again

it echoes

back to

that first

section

because in

the first

section

he talks

about the

enemies

stumbling

and falling

when they

attack him.

But now

he's praying

for God

to uphold

him as

he goes

forward on

the path

of faith

in spite

of the

enemy

attacks.

So there's

a sort

of echo

there of

what we

saw in

the first

section.

Also,

we see

a connection

with the

beginning

part in

this idea

of vision

because he

says,

he's talking

about,

I will

look on

the goodness

of the

Lord in

the land

of the

living.

And at

the beginning

of the

psalm he

talked about

God being

his light.

And so

God gives

us light to

see his

goodness.

I just,

what I see

here is that

as redemption

works through

history,

we return

from the

wilderness to

the garden,

right,

because of

what Jesus

has done.

It's only

by grace

that we

receive salvation,

deliverance,

and blessing.

This note

of courage,

wait for the

Lord, be

strong and

let your

heart take

courage,

wait for

the Lord,

again,

it bookends

the psalm

which started

asking,

who will

I fear?

So,

that's

symphony

in four

movements,

Psalm

27.

So,

back to

our

hymn

and the

hymn

writer,

Maltby.

he was

an admired

pastor and

preacher and

poet and

musician,

kind of like

David,

but he had

enemies,

maybe not

human ones,

but vicious

enemies.

The enemy

of death

stole,

he only had

two children,

neither of them

survived out of

infancy.

he struggled

with the

enemies of

doubt and

depression.

One of the

lines of the

hymn that we

didn't sing,

but it's in

the poem,

he says,

why should my

heart be

sad?

And so

obviously

there's a

sense that

he dealt

with sadness.

He dealt

with enemies

of injustice

and poverty.

He

pastored a

big urban

church and

was very

concerned for

the poor

and kind

of wore

himself out

with his

efforts in

caring for

the persecuted.

And he

died very

young.

He was

only 42

when he

died.

He got

a bacterial,

like some

neurological

infection and

he succumbed

to darkness

and exhaustion

and he

died.

But in

his life,

in the land

of the

living,

he waited

for God.

And we

see in the

hymn that

God was his

confidence and

his salvation

like the

psalmist.

And that he

was listening

for his

voice,

just like

David was

when he

says,

and looking

at him,

he shines

in all its

fear,

he speaks

to me

everywhere.

God,

the ruler

of the

world,

his father's

world,

was the

ruler of

his heart.

I just

want to talk

about light

and darkness

a little bit.

And so

if we look

at the

picture again,

one thing

I didn't

mention

before,

but you

might have

noticed,

is that

the shadow

of the

window,

the bits

of wood

across the

window,

which are

called

mountains,

by the

way,

if you

need some

architectural

information,

I learned

that,

they make

a cross

on the

hymn as

it lies on

the desk

there.

And the

artist is

saying that

it's the

cross by

which we

really see

God most

fully in

this world.

And it's

that last

verse we

sang,

Jesus,

the battle

is not

done.

Battle against

these enemies

is not

done.

Jesus who

died shall

be satisfied

and earth

and heaven

will be

won.

So it's

like the

light out

there is

coming into

the darkness

here and

that's what

God is

doing through

Jesus and

as we live

out our

lives in

faith,

the light

of heaven

is coming

into the

darkness of

our world.

And obviously

there is still

dark but we

carry his

light and

his salvation

with us as

we bear

witness to

Jesus.

this idea

of the

light coming

into the

world and

putting things

right was

captured by

the artist

Louis Tiffany,

heard of

Tiffany

Glass.

So Tiffany,

after the

hymn writer

Maltby

Babcock

died, he

was commissioned

to make a

stained glass

window in

his memory.

There it

is.

So this is

in the church

that he

pastored in

Baltimore.

It's one

of, I

think, the

two biggest

stained glass

windows that

Tiffany made.

Down the

bottom, you

probably can't

read it, but

it says his

name, Maltby

Davenport

Babcock.

So this

picture, this

stained glass

is called

the Holy

City.

It's in

reference to

Revelation

Revelation 21 · chapter mention

chapter 21

where John

sees the

holy city,

the new

Jerusalem,

which is

replacing the

Jerusalem where

David lived and

where the tent

was, were

formerly the

signs of God

presence with

humanity.

But now

this new

Jerusalem is

coming out of

heaven from

God as a

bride adorned

for her

husband.

I'll just

read the

rest of

that little

passage there.

It says,

a bride adorned

her husband,

and I heard a

loud voice from

the throne

saying, see,

the home of

God is among

mortals.

He will dwell

with them and

they will be his

peoples and

God himself

will be with

them.

He will wipe

away every tear

from their

eyes.

Death will be

no more.

Mourning and

crying and pain

will be no

more.

No more

battles, no

more enemies,

for the first

things have

passed away.

And the

one who

is seated

on the

throne said,

see, I'm

making all

things new.

Thank you,

God.

He's making

all things

new, a new

creation, a

new father's

world, which

we will delight

in for

eternity.

And we will

dwell in the

land of the

truly living.

And the

one that the

hearts of the

faithful desire

and seek after

above all else.

will be, our

desire to be

with him will

be fully and

eternally

realized.

We will

behold his

beauty and

learn from him

forever.

Until then, we

wait with courage

as God

strengthens our

hearts by faith

with thanksgiving.

being.

As I wrap

things up, I

just want to

mention this

book that is

maybe my

favorite Christian

book.

It's called

One Thousand

Gifts.

It's by a

Canadian

farm girl

named Anne

Voskamp.

She's from

southern Ontario.

Anyway, she

talks about

what she

calls the

Eucharistic

life.

That's a

life of

gratitude and

a life that's

shaped by the

cross.

When we

celebrate communion,

we call it

Eucharist.

It's a love

feast, a

celebration of

thankfulness.

She talks about

this psalm in

the book,

about verse

four, where it

says the one

thing that I

desire is to

be with the

Lord.

And what she

says about this

verse is,

I want to see

God endlessly.

I long to

merge with

beauty, breathe

it into lungs,

feel it heavy

on skin, to

beat the

door of the

universe, pound

the chest of

God with the

psalmist.

So that I

want to be

with you, God,

is what he's

praying.

Faith is the

gaze of the

soul, and I

want to see

in so I can

enter into

God.

God.

And she

has this

line in

the book,

just five

words, that

I have taped

to the bottom

of my

picture of

the hymn

there.

The line

is, all

the world

is window.

She says,

no material

is opaque.

If we're

willing to

see people,

circumstances,

situations,

relationships,

enemies, all

is transparent.

All of this

globe is but

glass to God.

God, and

Eucharisteo,

thankfulness,

washes the

glass.

It's redemptive

work wiping

away the

soot of our

days.

You know,

Paul says

that now we

see in a

mirror darkly,

but when God

puts things

right, we

will see

face to

face.

And we

can be

mirrors or

windows

ourselves of

God's work

in the

world.

People can

look at

us.

And so

I pray for

myself that

I will be

a window and

also that I

will see

others and

see my life

as a window

to God.

What is he

teaching me?

Lord, lead

me on your

path and

teach me

your way.

Show me

your face,

your face,

oh Lord,

do I seek.

God's work.

We need

those glasses,

right, that

were sitting on

the windowsill to

see the glasses

of faith,

the spectacles of

faith to see

what God is

doing in the

world and in

our lives.

And then,

no matter what

are our

circumstances,

we can live in

thankfulness,

singing and

making melody to

the Lord, as

David said,

bringing our

sacrifice of

praise.

We had a

workshop yesterday

about singing

and we talked

about the

sacrifice of

praise.

You might not

always feel

like praising

God, but

when we

remember Jesus,

we have

nothing but

gratitude for

the salvation

that he's won

for us.

I think of

Paul and

Silas, you

know, when

they were

beaten up,

unarmed,

unjustly and

thrown into

jail and

singing hymns

at midnight.

I wouldn't be

singing hymns at

midnight if I

was Paul and

Silas and

being whipped

and beaten.

I'd be curled

up in a ball

feeling sorry

for myself.

But they

knew so much

the grace of

God that they

could sing and

bear witness and

speak words of