[:en]SCRIPTURE: PSALM 84
“Blessed are those who dwell in your house; they are ever praising you” (Psalm 84:4)
“Blessed are those whose strength is in you, who have set their hearts on pilgrimage” (Psalm 84:5)
“Better is one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere; I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wicked. For the Lord God is a sun and shield; the Lord bestows favor and honor; no good thing does he withhold from those whose walk is blameless” (Psalm 84:10-11)
There are 3 feasts that the Jews would go to celebrate: Passover, Pentecost and The Feasts of Tabernacles. The author was unable to join the pilgrimage, so he wrote this Psalm.
- He yearned to go to the temple of the Lord and dwell in His courts. He desired to be with God’s people to worship the living God.
- He set his heart on his way to God in Zion.
- He remembered the journey as they passed through the valley of Baca.
- He looked ahead with the strength from God to continue the pilgrimage
Then he realized that the Lord is a sun and shield. He did not have to go down to the temple. As he stayed there, he could have God’s blessings of favor and honor as he walked in the light.
Do you have the desire to worship God? Have you trusted God for His promise and protection in your life’s journey?[:]