dwell, gaze, seek

“One thing I ask of the Lord, this is what I seek: 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 seek him in his temple.” (Psalm 27:4)

I don’t know about you, but I don’t typically ask to dwell, gaze, and seek.  I’m far too busy asking for my circumstances to change.  But circumstances are fleeting; they are only the tip of the iceberg.  A lot more substantial things lie underneath the surface.  Maybe it’s those things I need to address.  Maybe those are the “things” I need to “ask” for.  Maybe I need to ask God to do a work in me that’s far bigger than my ever-changing circumstances.  Wouldn’t that be a much better thing to ask for?   

We all long for spiritual intimacy with God but are often resistant to doing the very things that can bring it about.  We want the result, but don’t want to have to invest in the process.  Thus, the problem spiritual practice is that it only works if we do it.  The spiritual practices work on us, not on God.  They make time and space for spiritual intimacy to be more of a possibility.

If we set aside time and make space to dwell in his presence, to gaze upon his beauty, and to seek him in his temple, our level of spiritual intimacy is bound to increase.  For it is in the dwelling that deep knowing takes place, it is in the gazing that our hearts are captured by his beauty and his love, and in the seeking that we find him—and are found by him—in new and deeper ways.

I suppose that’s why it’s the “one thing” King David “asked of the Lord.”  And we might want to do the same. 

O Lord, we just ask for one thing: help us to learn how to dwell in you, give us eyes to gaze upon your beauty, and give us a heart that is continually seeking after you.  If you give us that, we will know you deeper and better than our hearts ever imagined.