Oh give thanks to the LORD; call upon his name; make known his deeds among the peoples! Sing to him, sing praises to him; tell of all his wondrous works! Glory in his holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the LORD rejoice! Seek the LORD and his strength; seek his presence continually! Remember the wondrous works that he has done, his miracles, and the judgments he uttered, O offspring of Abraham, his servant, children of Jacob, his chosen ones! ESV
This psalm is a reminder of God's acts of salvation throughout history. According to the Expositor's Commentary, it was used in corporate worship practices as a way to continually remind the congregation of God's faithfulness.
The first six verses are the call to worship. These verses call the people to worship God alone. They are also called to remember that God did this for them. Out of love for his people his did these mighty acts of power. Thus, out of gratefulness to God, they were called to worship him.
Verse 4 calls for a greater sense of intimacy than being physically present in a worship service where songs are sung, verses read and prayers given. Seeking God's face and presence continually is what prevents a worship service from being dry and formulaic and instead changes it into a time of renewal and refreshing.
When I read this verse, I think of Moses as the ultimate example of seeking God's presence. In Exodus 33, God told Moses that due to the sin of the people, God would have an angel lead the people but His Presence would no longer lead them as God would not stand their sin any longer. This word was enough for the people to realize that they had done wrong. Moses, too, was greatly distressed over not having God's Presence with them any longer to such a degree that he basically said to God "then we're not going." Plan b is not good enough in this situation, he wanted to stick with God's plan a which was to follow God's Presence, not an angel.
I love how Moses saw the need for God's presense and insisted on doing what was needed to remain with God's Presence. The wisest, strongest, most capable leader can only do so much with human ability. He needed God's Presence if he and the group were going anywhere. He also saw the lack of God's presence as a sign that there was sin in the congregation, which needed to be removed.
After he did what he needed to do to ensure that God's Presence would lead them, Moses still was not satisfied. He wanted to see God's Glory. I love his how hungry he was for God's Presence and Glory! Because he asked for more of God's presence, Moses was rewarded with a glimpse of God [as much as what a human can handle].
Use these verses from Psalm 105 and Exodus 33 to encourage yourself to always be seeking God's presence. Pray everyday to have and be more aware of God's presense in your life and worship service.
These two videos are ones that I have used in the past to help me pray these prayers ~
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