Psalm 84, "Homesick for God"  Rev. Scott Morris, Reformed University Fellowship at the University of Oklahoma.

God intends to change you by His Word. How is He at work in you to do that?  

Read Psalm 84 and consider these questions. 

WE ARE CHANGED BY GOD’S WORD — Psalm 84 (ESV)

1 How lovely is your dwelling place,
O LORD of hosts!
2 My soul longs, yes, faints
for the courts of the LORD;
my heart and flesh sing for joy
to the living God.
3 Even the sparrow finds a home,
and the swallow a nest for herself,
where she may lay her young,
at your altars, O LORD of hosts,
my King and my God.
4 Blessed are those who dwell in your house,
ever singing your praise!
                                        Selah
5 Blessed are those whose strength is in you,
in whose heart are the highways to Zion.
6 As they go through the Valley of Baca
they make it a place of springs;
the early rain also covers it with pools.
7 They go from strength to strength;
each one appears before God in Zion.
8 O LORD God of hosts, hear my prayer;
give ear, O God of Jacob!
                                    Selah
9 Behold our shield, O God;
look on the face of your anointed!
10 For a day in your courts is better
than a thousand elsewhere.
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 bestows favor and honor.
No good thing does he withhold
from those who walk uprightly.
12 O LORD of hosts,
blessed is the one who trusts in you!

1. Psalm 84 expresses an inconsolable ache for God. Where in your life do you experience aches in work, family, friendships, etc.?
2. The psalmist recognizes his ache for what it is--a longing to be at home with God. What would it look like for you to begin to let your aches become longings for God? What are some practical ways you could persevere in that longing through the dry places in your life?
3. What makes it hard to rejoice in God? How could you as a community group and a church cultivate joy in God?