My favorite verse in all of scripture is Psalm 84:10. It says, “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.”
There are a few points I want to take from this verse.
The first point is very simple. Let’s take that first sentence. “For a day in your courts is better than a thousand elsewhere.” This is pretty self-explanatory, isn’t it? Throughout the book of Ecclesiastes, we are reminded that the life that we currently live is meaningless. That may seem harsh, but it is true. However, it does not have to be that way. Romans 12 tells us that we are not supposed to live like the world lives, but we are to be transformed by the renewing of our minds. So how exactly do we renew our minds? Number one, we pray. Prayer is something that seems so incredibly small, but it is the biggest thing that we can do. Whether that be for ourselves, or for someone else, we must pray. Number two, we read God’s word. Prayer is incredible because it is how we talk to God, but we cannot have a relationship with our Heavenly Father if we do not listen to what he has to say to us. So, we can renew our minds by talking to God through prayer and by listening to God through reading the Bible. Referring back to Ecclesiastes, this life is pointless if we live for the world. It is not pointless if we live for Jesus and renew our minds. Think again about the first verse I mentioned: Psalm 84:10. This world is pointless, and one day here on this earth will not compare to the glory that will be revealed to us in Heaven! Romans 8:18 says that, “The sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.” Not only is Heaven greater than this world—it is not even worth comparing!
The second sentence in that verse is interesting to me. “I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of wickedness.” One word comes to my mind when I read the second half of this verse: “humility.” In Luke 14, we can read of the parable of the great banquet. Imagine that someone very wealthy was throwing a party, and many other wealthy people were invited. Now put yourself in that situation. I would be lucky, for I am so undeserving and poor, to even be a doorkeeper at the house of my Lord. I would be lucky to open the door for the esteemed guests at my Father’s party. But, they all made excuses as to why they could not come. So instead, the wealthy owner invites you. You do not have to be a doorkeeper anymore. You get a seat at the table! I get a seat at the table! We all do! We must have the attitude and mindset of humility, especially in reverence to God. James 4:10 says that one day, we will be glorified and lifted up by Him! We must wash the feet of those who surround us, just as Jesus did in John 13.
The second half of the verse does not end there, however. It says that I would rather be in a humble position than dwell in the tents of wickedness. This again just points back to how much greater Heaven will be than this world! A humble and seemingly low position there will be so much greater than what is here!
“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.”
Once again, this is my favorite verse in the entire Bible. It reminds us that this world is not our home, and Heaven is immensely greater than here ever was, is, or will be! This verse also reminds me to be humble in the sight of God and others.
I once heard it said this way: “The best thing that God can do for you, he has already done.” Jesus already died. No matter how bad this life can get, no matter how good this life can get, and no matter how much better we think this life can get, Jesus already died. The best thing that can ever happen for me has already happened. And, it’s happened for you, too. The question then arises: have you done anything about it?