God is our Protector

"The LORD shall preserve you from all evil; He shall preserve your soul." Psalm 121:7　

As we have seen in verse 2, the LORD is the Creator of heaven and earth. The LORD (when written in the Bible in upper-case letters) is the self-Existent, Eternal God, Jehovah. He depends on no-one else; we, on the other hand, depend on Him for every breath we take. He is all-powerful; He is our Refuge and Strength; He is the One to whom we can turn for help.

Shall - the Psalmist speaks on the LORD's behalf - He shall preserve you! It is definite. But what does it mean to be preserved?

Preserve - this word appears 3 times in the last portion of this Psalm. The Hebrew word means to hedge about, as with thorns; to guard; to protect. None of us would consider attempting to pass through a hedge of thorns in order to reach an objective. So God protects us by placing a thorny hedge around us - impenetrable to Satan; he cannot break through God's hedge and attack us. Jesus wore a crown of thorns, so that we could be eternally secure from Satan's attacks.

From all evil - everything the prince of darkness can throw at the human race, to cause us to turn away from Jesus.

Your soul - the Hebrew word used here comes from the root word "to breathe" - as in the breathing creature. The word is also used in the sense of body and mind. Thus, the entire, living person.

And so our verse can be written: Jehovah, the Eternal God, shall place a thorny hedge about you, so that nothing the evil one does will harm you. He shall guard your body and your mind.

We serve an awesome God! Give Him your body and your mind this day.

God is there for us

"Some trust in chariots, and some in horses: but we
will remember the name of the LORD our God." Ps 20:7

The Psalmist is saying how some people put their trust in the weapons of war to get them through the battle.

He, on the other hand, has learned that the name of the LORD is a stronger force than man's weapons. He has learned by experience to trust God, who gets him through life's battles.

Have you and I learned this?

Start a journal, in which you make a note of the times God brings you through the crises of life. You will be surprised, and encouraged, as you look back and review the way He helps you along life's road!

God is with you

"The sun shall not strike you by day, nor the moon by night." Ps 121:6

The sun brings life and warmth to our planet. In a process known as photosynthesis, plants use the energy from sunlight to produce usable chemical energy (plant sugar), at the same time releasing oxygen, which we all need to sustain life.

We also need a little sunlight on our skin daily to give us a measure of vitamin D. But prolonged exposure to the ultra violet rays can damage our skin.

The moon, on the other hand, is a reflector, bouncing the sun's photons off its surface toward earth, thus illuminating our planet by night. The moon's reflective light rays cannot damage the skin. Unlike the sun, which shines every day, the moon goes through phases, sometimes disappearing from sight totally.

At creation, God created the sun and the moon, setting the sun in orbit to rule the day, and the moon to rule the night.

The Hebrew word "strike" means slaughter, slay or wound. At the end of time God brings seven plagues upon the wicked. The fourth of these is the sun scorching men with extreme heat.

In the context of this Psalm, I believe the Psalmist is telling us that troubles (as big and fiery as the sun, or smaller, like the moon) may come upon us. They may come during the day, symbolized by the sun, or they may come during the night, symbolized by the moon, but God will not allow them to crush us or take our lives, for He is our Keeper and our Shade (verse 5).

Today, remember there's One at your side who will support you and carry you through whatever difficulties may come your way.

Jesus will return!

"For in just a very little while, He who is coming will come and will not delay." Hebrews 10:37

In just a very little while - Paul is here speaking about a brief span of time. You and I know what a rush life is, most of the time. Time is a commodity we'd like to replenish, if we could, when it's in short supply. You've heard the phrase "Time flies." This seems to be especially true in these times.

He who is coming will come - Jesus promised to return (see John 14:3). Paul writes about the certainty of His coming, using the definite article "will come", in today's verse.

And will not delay - sometimes it seems as if the Lord is delaying His coming. We see conditions on earth becoming worse and we wonder "how long until He comes?" Here's a thought: what if Jesus was delaying His coming just so that your name was listed on a page of the Book of Life?

Today's verse is written, not to put fear into us, but to encourage us. Jesus' own words, after He had described the signs pointing to the end of the world, are: "Now when these things begin to happen, look up and lift up your heads, because your redemption draws near." [Luke 21:28]. Today Paul gives us the same encouragement - when you can't hold on any longer, when the struggles of life get you down, take courage: in a little while Jesus will come!

I hope you find these thoughts both encouraging and refreshing.

God is not limited

Then Jonathan said to the young man who bore his armor, "Come, let us go over to the garrison of these uncircumcised; it may be that the LORD will work for us. For nothing restrains the LORD from saving by many or by few." 1 Samuel 14:6

It was a desperate time in Israel. The enemy Philistines had seen to it that the Hebrews had no weapons. They had eradicated every blacksmith from the land, and, to sharpen any agricultural implements, the Hebrews had to take them to a Philistine blacksmith. We are told that only king Saul and Jonathan, his son, had sword and spear.

The oppression had become so bad that the unarmed Hebrews had lost courage and were hiding in holes and caves. Saul had only six hundred men with him, and he himself was sitting under a pomegranate tree, without courage.

Jonathan decided that something should be done about the situation, so he and his armor bearer slipped unnoticed from king Saul's camp and bravely made their presence known to the enemy garrison at the top of a steep cliff. The Philistines taunted the two, and told them "come up to us, and we will show you something", so Jonathan led the way up the narrow pass. The climbers had the advantage in the narrow pass, and quickly took out twenty men. Then, to honor their faith, God stepped in and produced a great earthquake. The enemy fled in terror, and when the Hebrews saw what was happening, they gained courage and joined the battle. "So the LORD saved Israel that day."

Has the enemy at times surrounded you, leaving you defenseless and without courage? Move ahead in faith, and leave God to scatter the forces of darkness.

The LORD - Builder and Watchman

"Unless the LORD builds the house, they labor in vain who build it; unless the LORD guards the city, the watchman stays awake in vain." Ps 127:1

Two concepts are mentioned: that of building and that of watching, or keeping guard. Also, two items are listed: the house and the city.

The house is the dwelling place of the family. The house is built by laying brick upon brick, with good mortar joints in between. There are other components: adequate foundation, doors, windows, a roof, plumbing and electrical systems, furnishings etc.

If the builder does a good job, the house will stand for many years. But the Psalmist is not referring to the skill of the builder. He's saying that, if God is in the blueprints, the building will remain. If the house builders invite God to be the Construction Superintendent, including Him in all aspects of the construction, the end result will be a building that will stand the test of time.

The ancient city was surrounded by a wall, and had large, strong gates, all for the protection of the residents. At night the gate would be shut and secured, and a watchman would be on guard on the wall to see that no enemy was intruding. Inside the city walls were many houses. There was a market place where commerce was conducted, there were places of worship and also a building where food from the harvest was stored. And so the city was the center of communal life.

We are all builders. Every day we add something to our lives. The Psalmist's good advice is applicable to us, who live in the modern world: Make sure God is at the center of all that we do.

We have been set free!

"You shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the LORD your God redeemed you; therefore I command you this thing today." Deut 15:15

Today's verse is an extract from Bible history. The children of Israel were about to settle the Promised land. There were several things their leader, Moses, rehearsed with them before they entered their inheritance. One of these appears in today's verse as "this thing". Masters were to free all the servants whom they had bought over the years. The servant was to serve their master for six years. In the seventh year the master was commanded to set them free.

In freeing their bondmen, masters were to remember where they came from. They were all slaves in Egypt, a foreign land, and God redeemed them, setting them free. The word "redeemed" is translated from the Hebrew to mean sever, ransom, release, deliver. Verse 18 says, once the slave was released, "Then the LORD your God will bless you in all that you do."

Surely there is an application in this for us today - we were all slaves to sin at some point in our lives, and Jesus delivered us - He paid a price to set us free. The price He paid was "to give His life a ransom for many." (Mark 10:45). In gratitude, we would do well to tell others about One who can break their bonds.