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Knoxville, Tennessee, United States
Hello. Thanks for stopping by. If you care to read about what's crossing my mind or sticking in my heart I welcome you to my latest post. So, I hope you enjoy my ramblings. More importantly, I hope I can encourage you to join me in my quest to be a faithful follower of my Lord Jesus Christ.

Saturday, May 3, 2008

A good shield is hard to beat

What is the value of a good shield? When I go out in the sun, I wear a hat (please review my picture if you doubt the importance of a hat). It protects my head from the beating rays of the sun. Even though I appreciate the value of a good hat, God is the absolute best shield. Psalm 121:5 reminds us that "the Lord watches over you -- the Lord is your shade at your right hand; the sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon by night". These were great words to the ancient pilgrims traveling to Jerusalem. The Psalms of Ascent are believed to be songs for that journey. The message of this song is reminiscent of the Lord's words to Abram in Genesis 15. The Lord told Abram, "I am your shield". It is a message that we need to hear. God's protection is immense. Not only does He protect the outside of my head, He protects the inside which can become overwhelmed with fear. In short, His promise is for peace of mind and I cherish that.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

In Abraham's journey, it seems in the Word that God revealed His plan step by step. That is a "shield" against fear too, I think. If God told us everything at once, I wonder how much we would really obey Him if we knew the faith trials and the like we would go through.
Reminds me of the verse Psalms 119:105 "Your Word is a lamp unto my feet and a light to my path." God lights up our path one step at a time. And when He gives us His Word, another verse comes to mind....Psalms 119:89 "Forever O Lord Your Word is settled in heaven." His unchanging Word is the most important shield we can turn to and then act in faith on it.
I wrote a while back about fear and pride based fear. But lately the shield of His Word activated by His Holy Spirit is continuing to "step by step" conquer fear. The journey for me is being renewed.

Paul Metler, Ph.D. said...

So true. How blessed we are that God doesn't reveal the long view. Yet, He provides everything we need when we need it in order to obey and build our trust in Him. Great reminder of the power of Psalm 119. Thanks for sharing.