91:1 He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High
will abide in the shadow of the Almighty.
2 I will say to the Lord, “My refuge and my fortress,
my God, in whom I trust.”
3 For he will deliver you from the snare of the fowler
and from the deadly pestilence.
4 He will cover you with his pinions,
and under his wings you will find refuge;
his faithfulness is a shield and buckler.
5 You will not fear the terror of the night,
nor the arrow that flies by day,
6 nor the pestilence that stalks in darkness,
nor the destruction that wastes at noonday.
7 A thousand may fall at your side,
ten thousand at your right hand,
but it will not come near you.
8 You will only look with your eyes
and see the recompense of the wicked.
9 Because you have made the Lord your dwelling place—
the Most High, who is my refuge—
10 no evil shall be allowed to befall you,
no plague come near your tent.
11 For he will command his angels concerning you
to guard you in all your ways.
12 On their hands they will bear you up,
lest you strike your foot against a stone.
13 You will tread on the lion and the adder;
the young lion and the serpent you will trample underfoot.
14 “Because he holds fast to me in love, I will deliver him;
I will protect him, because he knows my name.
15 When he calls to me, I will answer him;
I will be with him in trouble;
I will rescue him and honor him.
16 With long life I will satisfy him
and show him my salvation.”
This is the favorite Psalm of the guy who's funeral I did just before I left Oakland, CA. Bruce Powell and I would read together this Psalm, and others, everyday of the last two weeks of his life. It will always be very special to me because of that.
God is the place we can go to when things get out of control. Just last night I was telling Karin how I become overwhelmed when I get too many things going in my head in a day. So we ended the night in prayer together. God is my refuge, God is my fortress.
He moves into our daily life to rescue us from the traps that we find ourselves in. He also protects us the way a mother would protect her young. In night and day I have no reason to fear but God is present with me.
I have yet to see the movie 300 yet that is the picture I have of 1,000 falling. There is an intensity to protecting us, the sharpness of picture, and the image of me standing there with so many lost and fallen around. No wonder I have rough days occasionally, many do not believe, and therefore do not yet have the ability to see what we see in the world. They are either turned over to themselves by God, or God is breaking down their view of the world and building up His. Both alternatives are often hard for people.
God protection is physical, over sickness. It is spiritual, with the angels. And it is over the natural world, related to the animals. There is no place that is out of his reach. That can lead to many questions, such as the problem of evil and others. So we can take these to God because he can handle them.
After all these wonderful things are described to us, we have a word from our sponsor, God. He reminds us of his love and promise to us directly. The gift of long life he gives to those who love him. For the first time in my life that is something I desire.
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