THE BETTER PLACE
Psalms 84:10-11 NKJV
10 For a day in Your courts is better than a thousand.
I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God
Than dwell in the tents of wickedness.
11 For the Lord God is a sun and shield;
The Lord will give grace and glory;
No good thing will He withhold
From those who walk uprightly.
Real estate agents will tell you the three most important things in real estate are location, location, location. The right location is where you want to be, especially when it comes to selling or buying a home. In our verses for today, the psalmist is talking about location and the best place to be.
A day in God's courts is better than a thousand. Or we might say living in God's presence is so much better than living away from Him. I can remember living outside of God's grace and the angst and anxiety I felt on a regular basis. One of the things I remember most about coming back to the Lord was the ability to lay down and sleep at night in peace. Being with God is the better place.
And the psalmist shares a perspective that helps all of us, but particularly those who are young. The allure of sin and pleasure comes to us all, but is deceptively appealing to youth. The idea that they are missing out on the fun that others are having because they are living for God is a very real thing. The psalmist says that just being a doorkeeper in God's house beats living inside the tents of wickedness. Although a doorkeeper seems to be a lowly position, it is still the better place. What is challenging for all of us is to see the long game. Those of us who have some years behind us see the value of living for God as the best long-term way of life. We must accept by faith that being connected to God and staying in fellowship with Him will beat any other option. Regardless of what this world's system values, living for God is the better place. Paul wrote Timothy that godliness, a dedication and consecration to God, is profitable in this life and the next.
The psalmist does speak to another blessing of living close to the Lord. The Lord is a sun and shield. We might say the Lord is light and protection. The light to see around the curves of life and the protection for what may try to harm us on our way. The Lord gives grace and glory. Paul would say that God's grace is sufficient for whatever we may face, and His glory outlasts anything man can offer.
And you have to love this next promise. "No good thing will He withhold from those who walk uprightly." Our good Father is not looking to withhold from us; He is looking to give. So walking uprightly would indicate we are walking with Him and in His ways, not our own. Walking uprightly is the better place to walk.
Living with and for God is not the easiest path, but it's the better place to be—now and for eternity.