ONE THING
“One thing have I desired of the LORD, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the LORD, and to inquire in his temple.” Psalm 27:4
What is it that matters most to us? The wise person knows what is important and makes priorities accordingly. Obviously, our families are important, as are our vocations, our health, our friendships, and our spiritual lives. But what is most important? What is it that we want more than anything else? In our Scripture, David declares that there is “one thing” that took precedence over all other things. That was his relationship to the Lord. He wanted to be right with the Lord and always be near His house. We may have interests and responsibilities in many things, but there is ONE THING that we are concerned about most.
There are some who might take issue with David’s position. For instance, they might say that the family should come before anything, but they are wrong. The family is important, but the family should not come before God. If a person puts his family before God, his family becomes an idol. If a person puts God first, he will be more likely to be the family person he is designed to be. When a person’s relationship to the Lord is not what it should be, everything else will be affected.
There ought to be something that is more valuable to us than our possessions, our relationships, our obligations, our leisure, or our comfort. The thing that matters most is our relationship to God. We want to know Him above all else. David said, “that will I seek after.” It is not difficult to see what our priorities are. Take an honest look at what we spend our time seeking. Are we seeking to know the Lord and grow in His grace? Are we seeking to spend time with Him in Bible reading and prayer? How easily are we distracted from the faithful assembly with the body of Christ?
David said, “that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life.” We do not worship the church, but we worship the God who placed a high priority on the assembly of the saints. We worship the Savior who promised to be present when His church assembles. David loved the Lord and lived to “behold the beauty of the LORD, and to inquire in his temple.”
What would you say is the “One thing have I desired”? What is it that we think about most often?