Text- Psalm 63:1 - "You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek you; I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you, in a dry and parched land where there is no water.”
One man in the Bible that demonstrated a high level of intimacy with God is King David. In fact, Acts 13:22 records that God referred to him a man after His own heart! Today I want to show you some valuable lessons from the life of David that we can imbibe as principles of developing an intimate relationship with God.
In one of his psalms, precisely Psalm 63 where our text is taken from, David gives us a vivid picture of his consuming passion for God. This Psalm shows us 5 things about David, which depict the principles that helped him build such a great measure of intimacy with God:
1. Yearning for God
As we see I our text, God was his heart desire; He set his heart to seek God, and this he did right early, remember he was a teenager (17 years old) when he killed Goliath! Before this time, he had built a solid relationship with God, such that he understood the provisions of the covenant and could challenge a giant.
2. Personal Fellowship with God
In verse 2 of Psalm 63, David said he sought to see God’s power and Glory as he had seen in the sanctuary. In today’s language he sought to see the glory and power of God just as he had seen in Church. This emphasized the importance of personal fellowship with God.
You must spend some personal time in God’s presence daily, to commune with Him and to allow Him to commune with you. It is very important to do your Quiet time (or Daily Devotion, as some prefer to call it)
3. A Strong Worship life
In verses 3-5 of Psalm 63, David said, “Because thy lovingkindness is better than life, my lips shall praise thee. Thus will I bless thee while I live: I will lift up my hands in thy name. My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness; and my mouth shall praise thee with joyful lips”.
4. Meditation
Psalm 63:6, “When I remember thee upon my bed, and meditate on thee in the night watches.” You must make it an habit to meditate on God’s word, His law, His love, and His precepts. Meditate on Him day and night!
5. Total Dependence on God
Psalm 63:7-8 “Because thou hast been my help, therefore in the shadow of thy wings will I rejoice. My soul follows hard after thee: thy right hand upholds me. The Message Bible paraphrases it this way, “Because you’ve always stood up for me, I’m free to run and play. I hold on to you for dear life, and you hold me steady as a post.”
PRAYERS
1. Lord, take me deeper in love with you. Draw me close to your embrace Lord!
2. Lord, please give me a fresh hunger and thirst today for intimacy with You. Put fresh fire on my altar Lord, in the Name of Jesus.
3. Lord Jesus, I hold on to you for dear life; please hold me steady as a post.
Image Credit: bennyhinn.org