Psalm 63:1-8 (NRSV)
Read Psalm 63:1-8 on biblegateway.com
Verse 1O God, you are my God, I seek you, my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water.
Verse 2So I have looked upon you in the sanctuary, beholding your power and glory.
Verse 3Because your steadfast love is better than life, my lips will praise you.
Verse 4So I will bless you as long as I live; I will lift up my hands and call on your name.
Verse 5My soul is satisfied as with a rich feast, and my mouth praises you with joyful lips
Verse 6when I think of you on my bed, and meditate on you in the watches of the night;
Verse 7for you have been my help, and in the shadow of your wings I sing for joy.
Verse 8My soul clings to you; your right hand upholds me.
Devotion
The words of this psalm are so contradictory, they should self-destruct right on the page. The psalmist says, “Oh God … my soul thirsts for thee;” then he immediately says, “My soul is feasted as with marrow and fat.” Which is it? Are we in a situation of perpetually longing for a full and complete connection with God? Or are we already in that state – those who “in the shadow of God’s wings sing for joy?” I have no answer but “yes.”
Prayer
God of paradox, enable us in the midst of our thirsting and feasting to embrace the “already but not yet” nature of our walk with you. Amen.