Better Than Life

As I write this, it is the first week of school. Before we begin rigorous lessons on algebraic equations or essay writing, we teachers spend the first week getting to know our students. We use games and activities to learn their names, interests, and hobbies, and in turn, we share about ourselves. What people outside of education often do not understand is that students today do not automatically respect teachers simply because they are adults. As teachers we have to show our students that we genuinely care about them in order to earn their respect. Some might think this is unnecessary or that we are babying the kids, but I believe it is a beautiful picture of the gospel.

David begins Psalm 63 by saying, “O God, you are my God.” From the start, he is proclaiming something that might seem unusual: a personal relationship with God. Why would the one and only holy God who controls the universe care to know me? This shapes the way we think about God, and it stirs our whole being to long for Him. Even His “steadfast love is better than life” (v.3). Love is simply a verb, so how could it be better than all of life? It is because God’s love is a unique and special kind of love.

I am no Hebrew expert, but the phrase “steadfast love” refers to a love directed toward the lowly and needy (BDB Hebrew and English Lexicon). God’s love for the lowly is seen throughout the Bible, but it is most clearly expressed in Romans 5:8: “But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” We were once without help, yet God cared for us so much that, despite our blatant sin against Him, He still died for us.

This kind of love calls for worship (v.3b–4) and leads to a life of worship. When David wrote this psalm, he was exiled in the wilderness of Judah, yet he still found comfort in the Lord. Verses 5–8 speak poetic truths that declare how we are satisfied in God, joyfully praise Him, remember Him, meditate on Him, take refuge in Him, sing for Him, and cling to Him.
All of this is possible because His right hand upholds us (v.8). I do not think it is an accident that David also writes in Psalm 110:1, “The Lord says to my Lord: ‘Sit at my right hand.’” This Lord is the Son of David, Jesus Christ, whose love for us is so strong that it can never be taken away. Through this love, we are empowered to live a life of worship to God and to love others as Christ loved us.

Teaching is not for the faint of heart. I have been called every bad name under the sun. I have been ignored, disrespected, and yelled at. I have had lies told about me and punches thrown at me. Yet by God’s Grace, I have been able to love those who have never been loved, to be a home for those without one, to be a parent to teenagers who are becoming parents themselves, to know those who do not know themselves, and to care for the least of these—because I, too, was once the least of these. All of this is possible because He first loved me and will never stop loving me.
 
Now that’s better than life.

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