A Psalm 91 Family

I have a friend who is always referring to her family as a Psalm 91 family. I have always been intrigued by the way she refers to her family and have often admired that it was her family’s connection to the Bible that she always spoke of first. But, during these times of uncertainty that the world is facing now, it is obvious to me that my friend and her family are not trying on some new found faith that God will take care of them but instead is just living life as normal as she puts her trust in God. My friend, Martha, is truly living, Psalms 91:11, “For He shall give His angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways.”
I took a little time to delve into what Martha meant when she said that she and her family were a Psalm 91 family. I contemplated the scriptures as I heard her tell me she prayed Psalm 91 over her children and her family. I was struck by her amazing faith but also moved to see just what that meant and how it would work for me and my family.
So, as I read Psalm 91, which I strongly encourage each of you to do, I noticed some amazing promises that God gives to us in Psalm 91. Promises that will bring you peace and fill you with joy. Here are the 10 that stirred my heart.
We abide in His Shadow.

Psalm 91:1—“He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.”—This reminded me that even when situations are hot and tumultuous God brings relief, rest and coolness. In Him there is a sweet peace and a complete sense of relaxation.

God is my refuge and fortress.

Psalm 91:2—“I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in Him will I put my trust.”—This reminds me of how very personal God is. It speaks to my heart a complete assurance that God is protecting me and will not let anything come unto me that has not passed through Him first. That means that those nail scarred hands, so symbolic of the love He has for me, aren’t going to let anything come my way that He has not allowed, buffeted and equipped me to handle.

He will deliver me.

Psalm 91:3-4—“Surely He shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence. He shall cover thee with His feathers, and under His wings shalt thou trust: His truth shall be thy shield and buckler.” –Here my mind wonders to the comfort and peace that God gives as He delivers me from those who try to hurt me, get me or cause me trouble, even those little pesky annoyances. Can’t you see yourself all snuggly in the arms of God, without a worry or care? That is how those who trust in Him live their lives.

In Christ, we have no fear.

Psalm 91:5-7—“Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day; Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness; nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday. A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh thee.”—Nothing is going to come my way that He has not already thought of, orchestrated a way of escape and equipped me to handle. Nothing surprises Him. As children of God, if we but put our trust in Him and allow Him to handle our problems, guide our lives and supply our needs then nothing will ever happen to us that is not wrapped in the peace of knowing God is in control and we are going to be just fine.

God will deal with those who treat us wickedly and harm us.

Psalm 91:8—“Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the wicked.” I contemplated a while on this verse. I think there is more than one nugget of truth wrapped inside of it. First, we are not to be part of recompensing evil to those who do evil against us. We are to watch as God deals with them justly and correctly. We are to let God handle those who do us wrong. Secondly, with our faith we can see that the reward of the wicked is not a reward that we want. It is a dangerous thing to fall into the hands of an angry God.

I am safe in the Lord.

Psalm 91:9-10—“Because thou hast made the Lord, which is my refuge, even the most High, thy habitation: There shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling.”—Because I rest in the Lord, because I put my trust in the Lord, because I am solely focused on Him, I am safe.

Angels are Watching over me.

Psalm 91:11-12—“For He shall give His angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways. They shall bear thee up in their hands, lest thou dash thy foot against a stone.”—The Lord Jesus lives in me and He has His angels around about me protecting me, looking out for me and holding me.

I am Victorious.

Psalm 91:13-14—“Thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder: the young lion and the dragon shalt thou trample under feet. Because he hath set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high, because he hath known my name.”—I am victorious through Christ and the God who will deliver me. Because I trust in the Lord and call upon Him in time of trouble, I can rest assured that I am victorious through Him.

I have a personal relationship with Him.

Psalm 91:15—“He shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble: I will deliver him, and honour him.”—God is not far away and untouchable without feeling for my hurt or answers for my problems. He is near to me. He cares for me and He hears me. I have a true, personal relationship with the God of the universe, my friend and my Saviour.

Serving Jesus and having a personal relationship with Him brings many rewards and blessings.

Psalm 91:16—” With long life will I satisfy him, and shew him my salvation.”—Nothing this world has to offer will ever satisfy me like Jesus. Putting my faith and trust in Him will reap rewards that are literally out of this world. The Lord will save me, satisfy me and daily load me with benefits.

I am awestruck by the love God has for me. It is so plainly manifested in His Son, Jesus who died for me. But it is also evident in His love letter to each of us, His Bible. I am so grateful that Jesus loves me and died for me. I am so thankful that God made a way for me and continues to make a way for me. I am thankful that I, too, can be a Pslam 91 family. I am thankful for Martha who lives it in front of me. May each of you find your place in Psalm 91 and claim it, pray it and live it.

Service in the Face of Fear

None of us are immune to fear. It shows up in the most unexpected ways and at the most unexpected times. Perhaps, we are asked a question that we don’t know the answer. Perhaps, we are asked to do a job we feel we don’t have the skill set to accomplish the task. Often, it is the latter that causes my heart to tremble. God seems to always be asking me to serve Him in a way that I feel I am just so inadequate to do so. But, God never makes a mistake. He equips, sustains and leads those He calls.
Clearly, I am not alone in this feeling of being inadequate to serve God in the way that He asks. Ananias was asked of the Lord to go to Saul of Tarsus and heal him of his blindness through the power of Jesus. Ananias was very afraid because Saul of Tarsus had the authority to bind all that called up on the name of Jesus. In addition, Ananias knew of all the evil things that Saul had done unto the saints at Jerusalem. I can’t even imagine how terrified Ananias must have been to approach Saul and heal his blindness by the power given him by Jesus.
Despite the fear of physical harm, and no doubt the fear of being asked to do such a daunting task, Ananias went and did as Jesus had asked. There is so much to learn from this passage in Acts 9:1-16. First, I am struck by the fact that Ananias did what he was told despite his fear. But, I am also encouraged that Ananias felt free to express his fear to Jesus. He told Him what he was thinking. So, often we feel as if we must bear our burdens alone, especially those that might be lacking faith. When in fact, we do not have to bear our burdens alone. We show our faith by bringing our doubts, our fears as well as our hopes and dreams to Jesus. When we pray confessing our sins, failures and doubts while revealing our desires and intents, God hears those prayers and gives us exactly what we need when we need it. Multiple times in the scripture, we see others asking God for clarification. This isn’t questioning God’s guidance or providential care. It is getting clarification and complete understanding. Ananias shows us we can ask for understanding when our heart is full of faith in Jesus and His power. Notice, Ananias did not question whether he could heal Saul by the power of Jesus. He was questioning how he could get it done in the threat of danger. And as always, Jesus protects His servant, Ananias. Service to the King is always under the watchful eye of the King!

Prayer: Lord give me the faith to walk in the courage of following you even when I am afraid. Teach me to trust you in all situations. Thank you, Lord, for being willing to listen to my concerns and to give me the peace I need to carry on. Thank you for equipping me, sustaining me and leading me.

“Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:6-7).

In Sync

“Can two walk together, except they be agreed?” (Amos 3:3)
I have been thinking a lot lately about how important it is to walk in agreement. The Bible asks that simple question, “Can two walk together, except they be agreed’” and life responds moment by moment with an answer. Friendships are strained when one doesn’t walk in harmony with the other. Jobs are ruined when coworkers work in chaos with one another. Churches become ineffective when congregations can’t come to agreement. It seems even nature resists the turmoil caused by not staying in step, man with the environment.
A perfect example of the importance of walking together was revealed to me when I looked down at the strings of my mandolin. I have just started mandolin lessons and as with most things, I am learning more and more about my walk with God as I explore this small instrument. There are 8 stings on a mandolin arranged in 4 pairs. Each pair consists of a string producing the exact same note. So, if one is out of tune with the other when you play the pair it sounds out of tune, because it is. If you don’t strum the strings simultaneously there is a distortion of the sound. For the instrument to play perfectly in tune, each pair must be tuned to make the exact same sound and the pair must be strummed simultaneously.
This simple truth of the mandolin is the same simple truth every Christian has with their Christian walk. We must walk in tune with God. We must obey His commandments, follow Him and do His will. We must walk so closely in step with Him that we become One as He shines through us. To see us is to see Jesus. We can’t be out of step so that you see us and only partially see Him or worse, you see us and not Him. We don’t want to look so different that others don’t even see the resemblance of Him in us. We need to be lost in Jesus and filled with Him.
My life needs to reflect Him. As the Holy Spirit glides across my heart and people see me, they need to see me, a girl saved by grace, walking hand in hand with Jesus shining His light for all the world to see.
Prayer: Lord fill me to overflowing. Search me and know me. Try me and remove from me anything that keeps me from walking perfectly in tune with you.

Connection

You never know the importance of a conversation, a word spoken or even an event attended. I often watch football on Sunday afternoons but never really think about it being anything but refreshing and a time for me to recharge. However, this Sunday afternoon was different. I watched a great Divisional playoff game just before getting ready for church. Loved how it ended and really enjoyed watching the game. In my mind, game over, event passed and on with my life.
Just a few short minutes later I was at church and getting ready to do my first lesson for 2020 with the younger kids. The first kid I saw was the boy that had driven me about half bonkers last year because no matter what I did, it just didn’t seem as if I could reach him or get him engaged. So, when I saw him I took a deep breath and prayed a simple, small yet very effective prayer. As we gathered for prayer requests, this little guy mentioned that they could take two names off the prayer list because those guys were no longer in the playoffs. My heart filled, and my eyes sparkled with glee. I knew immediately this was my in to this guys mind and hopefully his heart. I said, “Hey, wait.” The way he played today looked like he still needed prayer. His leg was not at full speed and he was much less effective.” My little friend whipped his head around like something out of a horror movie and said, “What did you say?” I calmly answered him and continued with more stats and information from the game. And just like that, instantaneously, we had bonded.
Perhaps, that doesn’t seem important to you. But, my job, as given by God, is to reach these kids with His gospel. I can’t do that if I can’t get them to listen to me or have confidence in me as a person, friend and teacher. He knew I knew about God and was well versed in the scriptures. What he didn’t know was that he and I were much more alike than different. What he didn’t know was that he and I could talk about a similar interest and have lots of fun while we also explored God’s love for him. What I didn’t know was that God really had a plan for my afternoon of football watching.
Now this brings me to my point of this whole post. God will use anything you give to Him to further His kingdom and do His Will. The Gospel is all about God’s love towards man and man must show his love towards others if they are going to reach this lost and dying world!
Mark 16:15, “And He said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.”
Sometimes the whole world is right in front of you.!

Prayer: Lord, please open my eyes to see everyone and everything you put before me. Teach my heart to respond in every situation with your love, grace and wisdom. Lord help me to invest every moment of my life and not to spend them. Take me, my life and my heart and use it for your service.