In the previous post (Psalm 27:1-6) we noticed that David is completely focused on the Lord – which is amazing as he is actually surrounded by enemies! He has pressed deeply into God’s very presence (verses 4-6). Now a cry wells up from David’s innermost being – “Hear me,” “have mercy,” “answer me.” It is a cry for even more of God.
Hear my voice when I call, O Lord;
be merciful to me and answer me.
My heart says of you, “Seek his face!”
Your face, Lord, I will seek.
Psalm 27:7-8 (NIV)
David’s heart hears God say “Seek my face” and he responds “Your face, Lord, I will seek.” He now has the incredible opportunity of getting ‘up close and personal’ with God. This is face-to-face, breath-to-breath intimacy that God is inviting David into.
Being face to face with God
Have you ever experienced something like this with God? Just as God invited David to seek Him and have an intimate relationship with Him, God also invites each of us into the same closeness. Yet it seems that David is almost afraid that having been invited into this close intimacy with God, that He will suddenly leave. David implores Him not to do that.
Do not hide your face from me,
do not turn your servant away in anger;
you have been my helper.
Do not reject me or forsake me,
O God my Savior.
Psalm 27:9 (NIV)
Instead, David asks God to teach him and to lead him.
Though my father and mother forsake me,
the Lord will receive me.
Teach me your way, O Lord;
lead me in a straight path
because of my oppressors.
Psalm 27:10-11 (NIV)
Being transformed
Verse 11 highlights that David is making a decision to change the way he lives and how he acts. He wants the straight path. In other words, he wants to bring his life completely into line with living in a way that God would approve.
This sounds similar to David’s prayer in Ps 51 where he invites God to wash and cleanse him, and give him a pure heart. David does not want any foothold for the enemy in his life. And this is a prayer we can each pray for ourselves.
But this kind of prayer also requires us to DO something – to make sure we are bringing our lives into line with living in a way that God would approve of. That’s what David is seeking to do. He is determined to take the “straight path” from now on, and asks God to help him do this.
Being intentional
Right at the beginning of this psalm, David had a choice to make. As we saw in the first post, enemies are all around David, and while he acknowledges their presence, he does not allow them to take all his attention. Instead, David makes some intentional declarations about who God is (verse 1). These declarations allow him to focus on God as his saviour, rather than the enemies surrounding him.
Focusing deliberately on God drew David to press even closer into an intimate, face-to-face encounter with God. As a result, David finds himself being transformed more and more to follow God’s way instead of his own.
The good news is that God is here for us, just as he was for David. So are there any intentional declarations you need to make today regarding who God is, even in the face of your own circumstances? Is God drawing you closer to encounter Him like He did with David? What transformation is God seeking to do in you?
Why not focus on Him for a few minutes right now, and ask Him what He would like to say to you today.
