If There Is One Thing We Need, It's This (Psalm 25-27)

A Few Thoughts to Consider

What is the one thing you need in life?

The psalmist David certainly had an answer. After a prayer of dependence in Psalm 25 and a prayer of vindication in Psalm 26, David turns to Psalm 27—a declaration of faith and trust in the Lord. This psalm expresses confidence in God's protection and guidance, especially during times of trouble. Despite facing adversaries, David remains confident that he will see God's goodness in his lifetime. When thinking of Psalm 27, author Rolf Jacobson shared this touching story:

When I was fifteen years old, I was diagnosed with bone cancer. The cancer led to the amputation of both of my legs and about ten lung surgeries to check the cancer’s spreading threat. Throughout that lengthy day of trouble (v. 5), which lasted over three years, there was a great deal indeed to fear and dread. There was the frightful prospect of death—the cancer that consumed my flesh (v. 2). Even more, there was the terrifying prospect of life—of spending all the days of my life with a disability. Would I find a career? Purpose? Love? In those dark years, this psalm became a favorite word of Scripture. Not because it denied the fears of life, but because through its powerful metaphors (war, enemies, abandonment by family, etc.) it sketched in an authentic way a picture of the terrific challenges of life.^[1]

In verse 4, David reveals the one thing he asks of God when he says, “I have asked one thing from the Lord; it is what I desire: to dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, gazing on the beauty of the Lord and seeking him in his temple.”

Contrast this prayer David prayed with that of his son Solomon, who asked for wisdom. While wisdom is certainly to be desired, David’s prayer for God’s presence is even greater. Gerald Wilson writes, “Dwelling in the house of Yahweh is not just an experience of aesthetic delight in the gracious hospitality of God. There is a protective benefit to the nearness of God.”^[2]

The longer and the better we know God, the more we shift from trying to get him to do stuff for us to just being content to sit in his presence. We stop striving and enjoy a relaxed dependence. Despite the pain of our situations and the complexity of life, we always have enough because God is enough. And as David wrote of God in Psalm 16:11, “In your presence is abundant joy.”  

A Meditation to PRAY

Praise | I praise You, Lord, for your unending grace and strength, which are the foundation of my life. I join the psalmist in desiring nothing more than to dwell in your presence, to behold the beauty of your creation, and to find solace in the peace that flows from your love.

Release | I release my fears, anxieties, and the heavy burdens I carry, trusting in your sovereign care. I let go of my need for control, my doubts, and the chains that hinder my spirit, embracing the freedom that comes from surrendering to you, knowing you guide my every step with love and purpose.

Ask | I humbly ask for the courage to walk in your light and the faith to trust in your guidance, especially when the path ahead seems uncertain. May I always seek your face, yearning to dwell in your presence and to absorb your wisdom.

Yield | I willingly yield to your will, recognizing that your plans for me are far greater than anything I could imagine for myself. As I submit to your will, I am reminded of the joy and fulfillment that come from simply being in your presence.

A Challenge to Act Like Christ  

Psalm 27:4 anticipates the intimacy and access to God that Jesus provides. In Jesus, we see the fullness of God's beauty and glory revealed (John 1:14), making him the manifestation of the divine presence the psalmist longs for. Because of Jesus, we can live in the presence of God through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. Ephesians 1:13 says, “In him you also were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and when you believed.”

God's presence manifests in several ways: the omnipresence, where God is everywhere at all times, offering a universal presence that sustains the universe; the indwelling presence, which refers to God living within the hearts of believers through the Holy Spirit, guiding, comforting, and transforming them; and the manifest presence, experienced as a tangible awareness of God's nearness in moments of worship, prayer, or divine intervention, where individuals or communities unmistakably feel his reality and power.

We’re guaranteed the first and the second, but the third often feels more elusive. While everyone experiences the manifest presence of God in different ways—some more than others—the key is to desire God. And as we draw near to him, he promises to draw near to us.

^[1]Nancy Declaissé-Walford, Rolf A. Jacobson, and Beth Laneel Tanner, The Book of Psalms, New International Commentary on the Old Testament. Accordance electronic ed. (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2012), 271-272.

^[2]Gerald H. Wilson, Psalms Volume 1, The NIV Application Commentary. Accordance electronic ed. (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2002), 484.