Psa 27:1-4 KJV A Psalm of David. The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? the LORD is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? (2) When the wicked, even mine enemies and my foes, came upon me to eat up my flesh, they stumbled and fell. (3) Though an host should encamp against me, my heart shall not fear: though war should rise against me, in this will I be confident. (4) One thing have I desired of the LORD, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the LORD, and to enquire in his temple.
This past week has been sort of strange. Steve Jobs died. There have been so many accolades posted and produced regarding his innovations and the power of going beyond the accepted norm to create something better than anyone has even thought of before. Along with several others, Steve Jobs shares his birth year with Bill Gates… and me… 1955 was a very good year! I share this year with my wife of 37 years! During the next few days I will remember several other deaths of people that had impact in my life: singer and songwriter John Denver, and author James Michener. Although Bill Gates has not passed off the scene, in my arena of technology much of what he started impacted more of my career. Yet,I have a memory in the winter of 1977 of a fellow IT person bringing in a small desktop computer called an Apple II …
Some may think it strange to remember any of these men, but I have contemplated their lives. Comparing myself to these two giants in the arena of technology sent me down several rabbit trails… What have I accomplished with my life? How will I be remembered? Will I have any good quotes? Will I have done anything special that anyone anywhere will take special note of at my passing? What will be my legacy?
When it comes to Pastors, there have been several that have touched my life and I honored them in previous writings, but Bishop James Kilgore and Bishop Frank Jones and Pastor Brett Jones have done more to shape the person I am today than they could even imagine. Again, I honor them for their touch that keeps me focused.
Hence, my focus on this chapter of David’s Psalm, and more importantly, this one verse. You see, David was a giant of his day. It may not have been apparent at the time of his various stations of life, but historically, we all see him as a powerful person in scripture. Abraham may be the “father and friend of God” and Moses the “savior” and Saul the “first king”… But David is totally different than all these others. He was the youngest, the simple shepherd, the slayer, the singer, the writer, the anointed one to be King, … Perhaps this list is too long to do it justice in these few short sentences. One of the things I see in David is the example of how to turn a bad choice around and reconnect with God.
Even with all of these thoughts, I find that David gives me an opportunity to “fill in the blank” of how I would like to be remembered. For every situation in life there may be different answers to this “one thing”, but I ultimately want to be known as a child of God.
How would you finish this sentence? “One thing have I desired of the Lord, that will I seek after; ____.” What is the desire of your heart? However you choose to answer will reveal a lot about who you are and what your priorities in life may be.
In the city where followers of Christ were first called “Christians” (Acts 11:26), Paul shares a brief history of Israel to a synagogue in Antioch. One translation of Acts 13:22 declares that God called David a man whose “…heart beats like mine…” This, of all other translations, set me to thinking what it must be like “To have the heartbeat of God.” I started looking for this concept of a heartbeat…
Take note of this thought…
a heartbeat is a single complete pulsation of the heart or a very short space of time, while a pulse is the rate at which the heart beats or the underlying feeling, emotions, or sentiments of a group of people
Your epitaph may read like history to the world, but that normally occurs after your heart stops beating. What does your life say about who you are right now? Is your heart beating like God’s?