Psalm 27—Where things are barren, but he is near.

The Lord is my light in dark
And my salvation in danger.
What other force 
should make me fear?
The Lord is my shelter.
How could dread ever dog me?
What fear could ever reave me?
Who could harrow me and hem me in?
When my enemies teemed
Snapping and gnashing at me,
They staggered and fell 
and were swept away.
Even if an army encamps around me;
Even if I am encircled with stratagems;
If I read it wrong; if I didn’t see it coming;
Even if war rises like a tide around me,
First to my knees, then to my waist,
Then surging over me 
To sweep my loves away,
I will not fear.

I have asked one thing from the Lord,
A request that waits beneath
My heart’s hardest hopes:
That I might dwell in the house of the Lord.
I want to see his face;
To feel his delight; to learn his ways.
When the day of trouble 
Finds me and misery calls,
He will hide me, wrap me, tuck me away.
He will lead me into the wilderness
Where things are barren, but he is near,
Where he can whisper
How it is and was and will be.
He will take me to a rock,
To high and holy ground,
And I will remove my shoes and pray.
I will remember how long I was lost
And how hard it is to come back.
I will sing, yes, and beat my chest 
because joy has found me.

So hear me when I cry, Lord,
And be gracious to me.
Answer me because I am smaller
Than I thought I’d ever be.
When you said to seek your face,
My heart said Yes 
Though I barely knew the way.
Don’t hide from me.
Turn toward me, fly to me.
Be my help again as you have been.
You are my last salvation;
If you forsake me, what is left?
Even if my father and mother leave me,
You will gather me in.

Teach me your way; I am here to learn.
Lead me on a level path;
I want to walk with you.

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