Daily Devotional for Small Group Discussion: How Lovely, How Loved

by Talitha Arnold | published on Mar 24, 2025

Discussion Questions 

  1. Read Psalm 84. Then read the devotional below, “How Lovely, How Loved.”  
  1. What is one of the most exquisite, elaborate places where you have experienced God’s presence? What is one of the simplest? 
  1. When has God’s love transformed a desolate experience into a place of resilient life? 
  1. What beautiful moments of holy presence and love have you experienced thus far on your Lenten journey? 

How lovely is your dwelling place, O Lord of Hosts. – Psalm 84:1 (NRSV) 

When the composer of Psalm 84 imagined God’s dwelling place, they probably envisioned the great Temple in Jerusalem. Built of marble and the cedars of faraway Lebanon, it was a place of mystery and beauty. The psalmist’s soul longed to be in that wondrous space, so adorned with gold and precious gems. It had to be where God dwelt. 

But then the psalmist shifted focus from the Temple and instead sang of the nests of birds: dwelling places not made of marble and gold, but of twigs, mud, and any other construction materials the everyday creatures could find.  

Even the sparrow finds a home, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may lay her young, at your altars. 

A few verses later, the psalmist again shifted focus, away from the destination (the Temple) to the journey to get there: 

Blessed are those whose strength is in you, in whose hearts are the highways to the Temple. As they go through the desolate valley of Baca, they make it a place of springs; the early rain also covers it with pools. They go from strength to strength.  

Yes, the psalmist could experience God’s wonder and power in the glorious Temple. But the psalmist also knew that God’s presence and love could be known in a place as common as a sparrow’s nest or as desolate as the Baca valley. Jesus knew that, too. With love, he transformed a desolate hill called Calvary into a place of life that even death could not destroy.  

Prayer
Lord, help us trust that wherever we are, your love will find us, and your loveliness will transform us. Amen.

Talitha ArnoldAbout the Author
Talitha Arnold is Senior Minister of the United Church of Santa Fe (UCC), Santa Fe, New Mexico. She is the author of Mark Parts 1 and 2 of the Listen Up! Bible Study series and Worship for Vital Congregations.