Daily Devotion

One Thing

Voice: Li Huan

Audio

Today is Monday, 23rd June. Let us spend a moment of silence in His presence.

We read Psalm 27:1-6

The Lord is my light and my salvation;
    whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold of my life;
    of whom shall I be afraid?

² When evildoers assail me
    to eat up my flesh,
my adversaries and foes,
    it is they who stumble and fall.

³ Though an army encamp against me,
    my heart shall not fear;
though war arise against me,
    yet I will be confident.

⁴ One thing have I asked of the Lord,
    that will I seek after:
that I may dwell in the house of the Lord
    all the days of my life,
to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord
    and to inquire in his temple.

⁵ For he will  hide me in his shelter
in the day of trouble;
he will conceal me under the cover of his tent;
he will  lift me high upon a rock.

⁶ And now my  head shall be lifted up
above my enemies all around me,
and I will offer in his tent
sacrifices with shouts of  joy;
    I will sing and make melody to the  Lord .

Glory to the Father, and to the Son,
and to the Holy Spirit:
as It was in the beginning, is
now, and shall be forever. Amen.

Reflection

The phrase “one thing” recurs throughout Scripture—often marking a moment of clarity, where all distractions fall away and a singular desire takes center stage.

In Luke 10:41–42, Jesus gently rebukes Martha:

“Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.”

In Psalm 27, amid cries for help and protection, David expresses that same singular focus:

“One thing I ask from the Lord… that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to seek Him in His temple.”

A place of His presence. A place of peace. A place of protection.

Like Martha, in the midst of anxieties and distractions of life, we can easily lose this focus.

If you have been seeking the Lord daily, you are likely to have this desire too. We too long for to be in the peaceful presence of the Lord. We too long most of all to worship Him. We want to gaze upon His beauty. We want to bring our deepest inquiries, especially the troubling ones, to Him.

One thing. We know that the time will come one day where we will find ourselves in the perfect House of the Lord.

Keep this desire in our hearts. For this desire will keep us walking in His presence till we see Him face to face on that Day.

We end with this collect:

One thing we ask, O Lord—
To dwell in Your house all the days of our lives.
To gaze upon Your beauty,
And to seek You in Your holy place.
In the midst of many cares,
You are our one desire.
In Your presence, there is peace.
In Your presence, we are home.
Draw us near, O Lord,
until we see You face to face.
Amen.

Be blessed by this song, Teach me to Worship You by Quek Li Huan

Teach me to worship You
Teach me to adore You
I want to love You with my whole being
To learn to praise Your name
Each day to do the same
Teach me O Lord the way
To worship You

I want to worship You
I want to adore You
I want to love You with my whole being
To forsake my sinful ways
To look upon Your face
And understand Your grace
O Lord my God

Link to today’s Morning Office

About This Daily Devotion
This weekday devotion is drawn from the Morning Office and is part of a project initiated by Revd Canon Terry Wong, with contributions from clergy and members across various parishes. Each entry includes selected readings from the appointed Psalm and another Scripture passage, accompanied by a reflection and prayer. An audio option is also available, often ending with a hymn or song. We encourage you to both read and listen.

Our aim is to help Anglicans engage more deeply with our rich liturgical tradition, while meeting the devotional needs of today’s believers. This project began on Ash Wednesday 2025 and is offered on weekdays only.

For feedback, please write to us at info@mpcc.org.sg.