Mike
Scriptures: Deuteronomy 16:16 Psalm 84
Some years ago, I was asked to give my Testimony, at the end someone asked me “where to from here”. It was a fair question, my illness did change my life, it refocused my concept of the Father longing for a relationship with His children. Understanding the Father Heart of God is vital for our transition into His Kingdom, but I fear that the gospel of hyper-grace has leavened the need for developing that relationship with God.
As we journey through this life, we are pilgrims in a dry and thirsty land. For those whobelieve in the Eternal Father, this world is not your home. We are travelling to our final destination, Heaven, where the Tabernacle, or House of God, is found.
Heaven is our promised land and to that eternal home we are bound.
At the time of David, every Jewish male was required to worship at the temple at least three times a year, if at all possible (Deuteronomy. 16:16). As they travelled to Jerusalem they would sing from the Psalms, I’m sure that they would have had some favourites that they liked to sing more than others,just as we alllisten toand sing our favourite songs.
One of those is Psalm 84. It’s a song of pilgrimage, all about going on a journey, just like we are on today. For many families, it was the highlight of the year, to be able to go to Jerusalem, see the sights and sounds of the big city, to be able to enter into the Temple and see the splendour of it.
Psalm 84:5. Blessed is the man whose strength is in You, whose heart is set on pilgrimage.
This is the pilgrim’s desire, to worship God with all his heart, to be in the courts of the Lord, and to gainstrength from God. And the object of this psalm is to depict the deep longing of the pilgrim to be in the House of God, to be in His courts, and to dwell in His presence.
Many travelled great distances and endured hardship to be able to make it to Jerusalem. On the journey, they could become discouraged, so they would sing and worship as they travelled. They would look for familiar landmarks as they neared their goal, just as we do. Familiar mountains and trees, road signs and valleys, or bends in the road that tell us we are getting near our destination.
Psalm 84:6. As they pass through the Valley of Baca, they make it a springs; the rain also covers it with pools.
There is a harsh valley that exists between Jordan and Jerusalem, the valley is called the Valley of Baca, and most pilgrims had to pass through this valley to make it to Jerusalem. It is believed that the Valley of Baca was a dry place that would test the patience of the pilgrims as they journeyed to meet with God.
Baca also means weeping in the Hebrew language, so many see it as a place of great sorrow. Growing in this valley is the Balsam tree, which at a certain time of the year weeps its sap, and, no doubt, this reminded the travellers of the tears that they themselves shed while on the journey.
Wouldn’t it be great if we never went through valleys in our Christian experience? If only things were always on an even keel, but that is not how life is, we too have our valleys of Baca that we pass through on our way to the New Jerusalem.
While we must, from time to time, journey through dry, harsh places on our spiritual journey, it’s good to remember that those places are not our home.
Remember that you are on a pilgrimage, Baca is not your home, God has designed you for something better, you are only passing through. If you continue on your journey, all that you are going through will soon pass away.
If you are in the valley right now and there seems to be no way out, I want you to know that God has already prepared a well for you to be refreshed. He has promised to never leave you nor forsake you, but to be with you to the end of your pilgrimage.
Prayer: Father God, thank You that You will always be with us as we make our pilgrimage to the New Jerusalem; as we walk through the valleys remind us that these are not our home, in Jesus Name, Amen
Comments