WHAT COULD BE BETTER THAN LIFE?

EN GEDI - DAVID'S DESERT SANCTUARY

What could be better than life?  David in the wilderness of Judah provides an answer:  “Because your loving kindness is better than life, my lips shall praise you (Psalm 63:3).  David was anointed as King of Israel and Judah by the prophet, Samuel, but he was on the run hiding from Saul, the fallen King who fell out or favor with God.  Living on the run in many ways was no life at all.  Nevertheless, David experienced the loving kindness of God in the midst of dire circumstances and travail.

THE CAVE AT EN GEDI

Psalm 63 is a remarkable expression of God’s reciprocal, synergistic intimacy with David.   David acknowledges God as his God:  “O God, You are my God.”  David responds to God’s goodness and grace by stating his priority for God in his life even in the hardship of life in the desert as he is pursued by Saul who seeks to end his life: “Early will I seek You; My soul thirsts for you; My flesh longs for You in a dry and thirsty land where there is no water.”  David’s seeks to worship the Lord in the desert sanctuary that nature provides:  “So I have looked for You in the sanctuary, to see Your power and your glory.”  All of this is a response to his growing understanding of God’s loving kindness in his life.

David’s worship is bold and unconstrained in response to God’s kindness and love.  He recognizes and readily acknowledges with praise God’s grace: “Because Your loving kindness is better than life, My lips shall praise You.  Thus will I bless You while I live; I will lift up my hands in Your name.  My soul shall be satisfies as with marrow and fatness (read: choice delicacies), and my mouth shall praise you with joyful lips.”  You might ask, “What does he have to be joyful about?”  The answer is that in this life threatening, high-risk time of his life filled with danger and harassment and on the cusp of death, David’s relationship with God is increasingly intimate as he recognizes and acknowledges God’s grace. 

In short, David’s intimacy with God and faith in Him is growing each day in the context of his hardships.  We see it even through the night.  David states, “When I remember you on my bed, I meditate on You in the night watches.”  What does he conclude?  He says, “Because You have been my help, therefore in the shadow of Your wings I will rejoice.”  In response to knowing who God is in his life and experiencing directly God’s loving kindness, goodness, and grace, David proclaims, “My soul follows close behind You; Your right hand upholds me."

Psalm 63 is a compelling example of synergistic holiness.  There is synergism in the intimacy of God and David.  Notice the reciprocity. God blesses.  David recognizes God’s grace and responds.  God blesses again and again.  David’s faith grows.  His love for God and appreciation of God’s loving kindness are  expressed in thanks, praise, and worship.  In the ongoing exchanges, God is shaping David into his holy likeness preparing him further to be a leader after the likeness of God’s own heart.  What could be better in our lives than that?  Thanks be to God!