How lovely is your dwelling place, O Lord of Heaven’s Armies. I long, yes, I faint with longing to enter the courts of the Lord. With my whole being, body and soul, I will shout joyfully to the living God. Even the sparrow finds a home, and the swallow builds her nest and raises her young at a place near your altar, O Lord of Heaven’s Armies, my King and my God! What joy for those who can live in your house, always singing your praises. Interlude What joy for those whose strength comes from the Lord, who have set their minds on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem. When they walk through the Valley of Weeping, it will become a place of refreshing springs. The autumn rains will clothe it with blessings. They will continue to grow stronger, and each of them will appear before God in Jerusalem. O Lord God of Heaven’s Armies, hear my prayer. Listen, O God of Jacob. Interlude O God, look with favor upon the king, our shield! Show favor to the one you have anointed. A single day in your courts is better than a thousand anywhere else! I would rather be a gatekeeper in the house of my God than live the good life in the homes of the wicked. For the Lord God is our sun and our shield. He gives us grace and glory. The Lord will withhold no good thing from those who do what is right. O Lord of Heaven’s Armies, what joy for those who trust in you.
Psalms 84:1-12 NLT
The house of the Lord is a special place! Sometimes Christians over- emphasize the personal aspects of faith, forgetting the importance of corporate worship. The Lord commands us to gather with His people to worship His name—with our whole heart and soul (v.2). There should be a longing to gather again for worship (vv.2-3, 10), and there is joy and blessing for those who worship the Lord together (vv.2, 4-5, 12). Weekly gathered worship should be a priority for those who follow Jesus.
The Lord lives everywhere; the universe cannot contain Him. We can worship God anywhere in all the earth, yet there is something special (sacred) about spaces that have been set aside to glorify God. These are the places where we gather with others who love the Lord, praise His name, and have our lives transformed by His love. We need to live out our words of worship every week, and we need to long to gather again with God’s people to praise His name again!
Do you prioritize weekly gathered worship with God’s people? What difference does it make?
