Better is one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere; I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wicked. – Psalm 84:10

Today’s Scripture Reading (September 15, 2013): Psalm 84

I watched the Season Finale of “Who Do You Think You Are?” last week. The program featured the “Big Bang Theory’s” Jim Parsons examining his family tree. Parsons made a couple of discoveries during the filming of the show. He said that he always thought that he was of French heritage, but was not sure if he would be able to trace his heritage all the way back to France. So the show followed his process of finding his heritage. But it did not take long for Parsons to find the French Connection. Although Parsons himself is from Texas, and all of the relatives that he is aware of live in Texas, he quickly found out that his French relatives were from Louisiana.

But he continued the process and finally arrived at evidence that he did indeed have ancestors that lived in France. In fact, he found a connection between his ancestors and the court of King Louis XV. Just before the French Revolution, his ancestor was an Architect of reigning French King. But in its typical fashion the show, just before the last commercial break, dropped the news that many of the people who had found their way into King Louis court were executed along with the King and Queen during the years of the Revolution. Unfortunately, that is always the danger when we are connected with power. Power has never been a constant thing. It tends to rise and fall. And when power is on the rise, there is no better place to be. But when power is in decline, there is no more dangerous place to be.

The Psalmist says that he would rather be a doorkeeper in the House of the God than dwell in the homes of the wicked. And in this he speaks to one of the greatest temptations that we face. It always seems that it is the wicked who prosper. So the temptation is to leave the things of God and just follow the path of wicked and hopefully find ourselves in a place of temporary prosperity. It is a temptation that the Psalmists were well aware of – in fact, it is a situation that is the feature of the opening lines of Aspah’s Psalm 73. But here, while the Psalmist recognizes the temptation, he decides to choose something different. Because he realizes that the truth is that the prosperity of the wicked may rise and fall, but with God, that power is forever.

For Parsons, the good news for his ancestor was that, while he was part of the court of King Louis, he was not closely associated enough with the king to share his fate. He actually seemed closer associated with some of the foreign radicals of the day – including Benjamin Franklin and John Adams. But the result was that Parsons ancestor would die peaceably after the Revolution. For the Psalmist, it was spiritually a result that would only be guaranteed in the house of God.

Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: Psalm 85