Psalm 63

Chaplain Suzanne Leahy, MAR, CTCA/Eastern Regional Medical Center

¹ O God, you are my God, earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you, my body longs for you, in a dry and weary land where there is no water. ² I have seen you in the sanctuary and beheld your power and your glory. ³ Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you. ⁴ I will praise you as long as I live, and in your name I will lift up my hands. ⁵ My soul will be satisfied as with the richest of foods; with singing lips my mouth will praise you. ⁶ On my bed I remember you; I think of you through the watches of the night. ⁷ Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings.

This Psalm full of truth, encouragement and joy was written by David from the wilderness of Judah.

What do you picture when you hear the word “wilderness?” I picture lots of heat, sand, dust, bugs, snakes, pitch black night skies and silence, except for those scary predators that come out just when I need to sleep. I would have a hard time translating those things into aspects of God’s character ... because I’d be busy panicking about my circumstances and not thinking of the one who holds my life in his hands!

But David allows his difficult surroundings to bring to his heart reminders of God’s perfect power, glory and loving care for his children.

Instead of focusing on hunger and thirst, David uses those realities of physical life to illustrate how much he wants to know God—and how worthy God is of his pursuit! I’m pretty sure the reason David can do this is because of what he tells us in verse 6: “On my bed I remember you; I think of you through the watches of the night.” David spent a lot of time meditating on God’s character and remembering all God had done in his life up until the time at hand, so it came naturally to him to trust God and, thereby, have peace.

Not only did David have peace, but he was actually able to sing! In verse 7 he tells God: "Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings." David was able to sing because he knew God was with him and he was with God—no question, no doubt.

My hope for you is that you will sing today, because you’ve spent time meditating on God’s character, remembering all His goodness to you and enjoying that safest of places under His wings.