Psalm 63 — Our Prayer of Resolve

A Psalm of David, when he was in the wilderness of Judah.

1 O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee:
My soul thirsteth for thee, my flesh longeth for thee,
In a dry and weary land, where no water is.
2 So have I looked upon thee in the sanctuary,
To see thy power and thy glory.
3 For thy lovingkindness is better than life;
My lips shall praise thee.
4 So will I bless thee while I live:
I will lift up my hands in thy name.
5 My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness;
And my mouth shall praise thee with joyful lips;
6 When I remember thee upon my bed,
And meditate on thee in the night watches.
7 For thou hast been my help,
And in the shadow of thy wings will I rejoice.
8 My soul followeth hard after thee:
Thy right hand upholdeth me.
9 But those that seek my soul, to destroy it,
Shall go into the lower parts of the earth.
10 They shall be given over to the power of the sword:
They shall be a portion for foxes.
11 But the king shall rejoice in God:
Every one that sweareth by him shall glory;
For the mouth of them that speak lies shall be stopped.

Here is our psalm of commitment. It is our pledge of faith and our resolve. If God is a rock of refuge, then we will seek after him. If God is good then his goodness will be our all.

David's desire and pursuit for God reminds me of the Sermon on the Mount. David seeks, thirsts and longs for God in a dry and weary land. Jesus himself says, blessed are those who hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. He tells us to seek first the kingdom and all these things will be added to us. He promises that if we ask it will be given to us In poetic form, this psalm is our response in prayer, having learned at the feet of Jesus. We know these are the right ideas to pursue: we believe God's "lovingkindness is better than life".

So, we turn to praise God in our conviction. Our trust and faith, fed by hope, brings praise to our lips. Reciting the promises of God in praise, our excitement for the promises brings out greater praise. And all this, because our enemies were difficult of late. Maybe this is why James, the brother of Jesus, teaches us to count it all joy when encountering various trials, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness, which brings us to completion. Those who fail in faith and praise fall into the earth. Those who cling to the Lord in faith rise up in fellowship.