Three Pearls, Three Minutes, Thirty Days. (Day 27)

1The 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? 2When the wicked advance against me to devour me, it is my enemies and my foes who will stumble and fall. 3Though an army besiege me, my heart will not fear; though war break out against me, even then I will be confident. 4One thing I ask from the Lord, this only do I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze on the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple. 5For in the day of trouble he will keep me safe in his dwelling; he will hide me in the shelter of his sacred tent and set me high upon a rock. 6Then my head will be exalted above the enemies who surround me; at his sacred tent I will sacrifice with shouts of joy; I will sing and make music to the Lord. 7Hear my voice when I call, Lord; be merciful to me and answer me. 8My heart says of you, “Seek his face!” Your face, Lord, I will seek. 9Do not hide your face from me, do not turn your servant away in anger; you have been my helper. Do not reject me or forsake me, God my Savior. 10Though my father and mother forsake me, the Lord will receive me. 11Teach me your way, Lord; lead me in a straight path because of my oppressors. 12Do not turn me over to the desire of my foes, for false witnesses rise up against me, spouting malicious accusations. 13I remain confident of this: I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. 14Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.

 Today’s Three Pearls

• When the wicked advance against me to devour me, it is my enemies and my foes who will stumble and fall – v.2: Why do worldly people hate the godly so much? Not for their weaknesses, of which there is always a lot in each one, but for their holiness and the graces they have been gifted with. These vain people do not want the holiness, and yet they do not want those who have it to live in it peacefully; they tempt and seduce, they slander, they plot and scheme. No matter how menacing they appear as they charge and plot, they are still the weaker side for not having God. They know this, but they hope their target has insufficient faith. When the believer rises from his knees in fervent prayer, he is strengthened in faith and has unleashed the forces of heaven on his behalf. He is delivered from his enemies while they are still scheming and they are left in confusion and disarray. What, when, how?? In their confusion, they stumble, sometimes into the very traps they had set for the child of God.
• One thing I ask from the Lord, this only do I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life……..For in the day of trouble he will keep me safe in his dwelling; he will hide me in the shelter of his sacred tent and set me high upon a rock. Then my head will be exalted above the enemies…-v.4-6 paraphrased : If David could make only one request, it was to be free once again to spend quality time with God. He knew that if he heeded the advice-“seek ye first the Kingdom of God, and all the rest shall be added unto it“-if he sought God with all his heart and everything he had as a priority, the other things he wanted would be a given. God would keep him safe in the day of trouble in the land, and then elevate him above all his enemies. A word for the wise.
• My heart says of you, “Seek his face!” Your face, Lord, I will seek – v.8: God takes the first step in drawing us into a deeper relationship with Himself by putting in us the grace to want to come to Him. He wants to be known, He wants to reveal Himself to us and share His secrets and broad-views with us; He wants to share His own divine wisdom when we become intimate with Him. Much as we share our closest secrets with our closest friends. The more we know God, the more we hunger for more of Him and not his gifts or blessings. The more we know Him, the easier it is to do His will just because we are so fond of Him. Much as we seek to always please someone that we are in love with.

Ref: Treasury of David