Honest Reflections

One-minute read.

ON THEIR HANDS THEY WILL BEAR YOU UP, 
    LEST YOU STRIKE YOUR FOOT AGAINST A STONE.  

PSALM 91:12 

Have you ever felt like you can’t take another step?  Life’s problems overwhelm you, and getting out of bed seems like the hardest thing to do.  I have.  My darkest moments have found me on the floor of my prayer closet, unable to stand.  At those times, I cry out to the Lord, asking Him for the strength to keep going, and He always answers.  God’s angels pick me up and help me to persevere despite all the odds.  And they will do the same for you. 

Our summer began with the tragic loss of the flower girl from our wedding in an accident.  Only twenty, her bright light now shines from heaven.  Moving through the grief, we’ve needed angels to lift us up and keep us from stumbling.  Knowing she now lives in heaven, wrapped in the arms of Jesus, comforts us, but the reality of her loss requires divine assistance.  And God gives it, sending His angels to bear us up in their hands. 

God never intended for us to live life without His assistance.  In the Lord’s divine plan, He designed angels to help us when needed.  Trusting in the Creator’s plan means relying on His support, leaning into Him for strength, and not trying to do things on our own steam.  God provides our needs, supports our efforts, and helps us persevere, sometimes with His angels carrying us. 

Application: 

Angels bear us up in their hands. 

Prayer: 

Lord, thank You for Your celestial beings that watch over us, protect us, and carry us when needed.  Please help us lean into You more, trusting You with our every need, knowing You will provide.  In all things, let us honor and serve You well. 

IJNIP. Amen 

One-minute read.

FOR HE WILL COMMAND HIS ANGELS CONCERNING YOU 
    TO GUARD YOU IN ALL YOUR WAYS.  

PSALM 91:11 

Malak, the Hebrew word for angel, means messenger, human representative, angel, a supernatural representative of God, sometimes delivering messages, sometimes protecting God’s people; the “angel of the LORD” sometimes shares divine characteristics and is sometimes thought to be a manifestation of God himself, or of the pre-incarnate Christ. (1) Angels exist in the world, having different purposes. The Lord commands His angels to watch over us, guarding us in all our ways.

“This Present Darkness,” a fictional novel about spiritual warfare by Frank Perretti, helped me understand the battle that rages around us between good and evil. Set in a small town in the USA, the young praying pastor unwittingly stops the devil’s ploys with his persistent faith. God’s angels reveal themselves and their divine majesty when all seems lost. Throughout the Bible, the Lord’s angels help propel His story forward, which He still does today.

We never know when we may entertain an angel, but we can count on God using them to protect and watch over us. Often, I ask the Lord to watch over my loved ones, surrounding them with His angels, trusting their protection. Not only does God give us the Holy Spirit to guide and direct us, He commands His angels to guard us.

Relying on the Creator’s promises, trust that He will command His angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways. His word says He does; believe it.

Application: 

God commands His angels concerning you. 

Prayer: 

Lord, thank You for commanding Your angels concerning us to watch over and protect us.  Please help believe Your promise, relying on Your protection and that of Your heavenly army.  Let us live boldly for Christ, knowing You have our backs. 

IJNIP. Amen 

(1)  NIV Exhaustive Concordance Dictionary. Copyright © 2015 by Zondervan.

One-minute read.

NO EVIL SHALL BE ALLOWED TO BEFALL YOU, 
    NO PLAGUE COME NEAR YOUR TENT.  

PSALM 91:10 

Everyone struggles; bad things happen to good people. Whoever you meet today and everyone you talk with in the next 24 hours has some battle in their life. Understanding that God protects us from evil, keeping the plagues away from us, challenges believers when they experience the storms of life. But the Lord does protect us; as bad as we think our problems, someone always has it worse.

A friend of mine likes to use the lake analogy. If we all put our problems into a lake and then drew out someone else’s issues, we would want our own back. Jesus never said we wouldn’t have problems, but He did tell us to take heart; He had already won the victory.

“𝑰 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒕𝒐𝒍𝒅 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒔𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒔, 𝒔𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒊𝒏 𝒎𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒎𝒂𝒚 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒑𝒆𝒂𝒄𝒆. 𝑰𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒍𝒅 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒕𝒓𝒐𝒖𝒃𝒍𝒆. 𝑩𝒖𝒕 𝒕𝒂𝒌𝒆 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒕! 𝑰 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒍𝒅.” 𝑱𝒐𝒉𝒏 16:33

Trusting in the Lord’s protection doesn’t mean He won’t allow things into our lives that will challenge us. Storms will come, but God’s umbrella will give us His peace during the hurricane and show us how to survive the waves. The Lord doesn’t give us all the answers at once; He gives us what we need for the day ahead. Our minds can take us places we shouldn’t go, but when we focus on the Lord, living in the moment, we will find His divine protection guiding us through the day.

Application: 

God protects us. 

Prayer: 

Lord, thank You for protecting us from the evils of this world.  Please help us remember Your divine protection when the storms of life come upon us.  Let us walk boldly forward, knowing You guide and protect our path. 

IJNIP. Amen 

One-minute read.

Because you have made the Lord your dwelling place—the Most High, who is my refuge.

Psalm 91:9

Speaking out of experience, David encourages us to take refuge in the Lord, the Most High. Nothing happens on Earth without the Lord’s knowledge. I understand that fact can challenge our relationship with the Creator because of the terrible things that occur. When I think of the evil people do to each other, it makes me sick to my stomach. But God doesn’t do those things; people do them of their own free will and volition. Sin does exist, spiritual warfare rages around us, and if people don’t worship the Lord, they worship the things of this world, causing them to do unspeakable things.

Taking refuge in the Lord means we can have confidence in Him.  Trusting God’s promises, we know all things work for the good of those who believe and trust Him.  And we will remember, the things of this world will pass away, but the reward that awaits us in heaven never will. In God, we can find the tools to persevere in this fallen world, keeping the Son in our eyes and living for Him.

Bad things happen every day. Christ’s followers experience persecution and suffering. Jesus promised we would have tribulation in the world, but we should take heart because He overcame the world when He rose again, defeating death and sharing His victory with us. Seek refuge in the Most High’s arms, and you will find it. Let the Lord fight for you; find strength in Him.

Application:

God gives us refuge.

Prayer:

Lord, thank You for giving us a place to hide, allowing us to take refuge in You, and allowing us to find peace that surpasses all understanding. Please help us stand firm in our faith when trials rage around us. Please give us the tools to keep going when everything seems lost.

IJNIP. Amen

One-minute read.

You will only look with your eyes. And see the recompense of the wicked.

Psalm 91:8

Rasa, the Hebrew word for wicked, means “evil, guilty, in the wrong, ungodly”[1]. In our world, the heartbreaking reality of evil deeds done by humans to each other discourages anyone. But we find hope when we peer at the world through the Lord’s lens of salvation. Faith encourages us; not only will God protect and bless us, but one day, justice will come to those who do ungodly things.

When people choose to do evil things, it breaks my heart. They don’t have to answer me for their actions, but one day, they will stand before the Creator and give an account of their hateful deeds. Without Christ to defend them, they will suffer the Lord’s wrath and eternal separation from Him. My heart aches for anyone who chooses separation from God over an eternity filled with His glory and unconditional love.

Free will gives us the freedom to live any way we want. But faith in Jesus gives us direction on how to live a Godly life, experiencing His protection and blessing from the world’s hatred. Yes, we will suffer like Christ, but our reward lies in heaven. Until then, we serve the Lord, working towards Him and fulfilling His purpose for our lives. Peer through the lens of Jesus, fill your heart with hope, trusting in His justice.

Application:

God’s justice will prevail.

Prayer:

Lord, thank You for providing justice in an evil world. Please help us view life from Your perspective, allowing our faith to encourage and uplift us as we strive to love people and share the good news of Christ with others.

IJNIP. Amen

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[1] https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm+91%3A8&version=NIV&tab=interlinear

One-minute read.

A thousand may fall at your side, ten thousand at your right hand, But it will not come near you.

Psalm 91:7

Promising to shield His children from the judgment of the wicked doesn’t mean we won’t experience troubles. The Lord does allow struggles into our lives that change the direction of our paths. Bad things happen to good people, as we all know. But our limited perspectives don’t always arrive at the correct conclusion. In the long run, what we deem as bad may prove good.

When the church I worked for eliminated my position, I first thought of it as a bad event. But I realized God answered my prayer. Poor leadership caused me to begin praying for my future in the organization. Just before I received the text calling me in for the meeting, I resigned myself to the fact that the Lord didn’t want me to leave. They eliminated my position two days later, freeing me from my obligations. 

In hindsight, I see God’s protection and guidance as He directed me on a different path. What I first judged as bad had my best interest at heart. The Lord does shield us from unjust judgments, and sometimes, He does it in ways we don’t understand. Only in time can we fully understand the Lord’s work, but we can always trust He has our best interest at heart.

Application:

God shields us from the wicked.

Prayer:

Lord, thank You for shielding us from the wicked and leading us on the path of righteousness. Please help us not judge too quickly, allowing You to work in our lives as You guide us along the narrow road to our eternal home.

IJNIP. Amen

One-minute read.

Nor the destruction that wastes at noonday.

Psalm 91:6b

Resistance comes with faith. Threats come in many ways, including direct attacks, diseases, and epidemics. When COVID-19 happened, it affected the entire world; no one had immunity to the virus. People made fear-based decisions with unexpected consequences, some helpful, others not. But through the pandemic, God remained in control. Nothing surprises the Creator, not even COVID-19.

During that period, I received an email from a non-believer in the grips of panic, uncertain what to do and believe. In my response, I shared my faith and how I trusted the Lord and His guidance, not man’s. Because of my beliefs and God’s sovereignty, I had the peace that surpasses all understanding, continuing to live as I do today, entirely in Christ, trusting His leading.

God’s sovereignty reigns outside our human grasp of time and space. The Lord sees all history in His view: beginning, middle, and end. Wasting nothing, the Creator uses everything for His purpose. What we can’t understand from our earthly perspective, we will one day fully know when God calls us to our eternal home. Until then, the Lord protects us from the threats we face in this world, holding us close in the palm of His hand.

Application:

God always protects us.

Prayer:

Lord, thank You for always protecting us from worldly threats, no matter the time of day. Please help us live confidently in You, knowing You control our destiny. Let our lives unfold as You will, living out our purpose one day at a time.

IJNIP. Amen

One-minute read.

Nor the pestilence that stalks in darkness

Psalm 91:6a

When going through a trial, nighttime always challenges me the most. As darkness surrounds me and my thoughts go wandering, I can easily upset myself, whether by anxiety, fear, grief, or some other negative emotion. Worry causes many sleepless nights. But as I learn to turn my feelings into prayers, asking the Lord to help me control them, I find peace, even in the darkest night. Wherever God goes, there goes light. His protection pierces the blackness and gives us strength to persevere.

“And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.” Colossians 3:17

Praying the name of Jesus evokes divine power in any situation. Keeping a heavenly mindset means doing all things with and for Christ. Whatever our battles, we have an ally we can call on, night or day, to help. Often, I find myself rebuking anxiety in the Savior’s name. Having recognized the powerful influence of emotions, I don’t want to steal any of my joy. Now, when my breath becomes shallow, and my heartbeat quickens, I know Who to call on to calm my body and mind. The pestilence that stalks in darkness cannot win against the Prince of Light.

When fear grips you, cry out to Jesus. Ask the Lord to guide your way with His light in the darkest of nights. Don’t live in the grips of anxiety; turn to the Creator and ask Him for peace. Lean into God, knowing He will never leave you nor forsake you. Whatever situation you find yourself in today, know the Lord’s with you. Call on His name, and Jesus will answer and give you what you need when needed.

Application:

Christ pierces the darkness.

Prayer:

Lord, thank You for Your light that pierces the darkness and gives us hope in our desperate moments. Please help us cling to You when we don’t know what else to do. Please give us the strength to persevere when our will falters.

IJNIP. Amen

One-minute read.

Nor the arrow that flies by day

Psalm 91:5b

Every Christ follower experiences spiritual warfare. Using temptation, the enemy tries to lure people away from the straight and narrow path of following Jesus or even keep them from finding the salvation God offers through His Son. The Lord gave us free will; without it, we can’t choose love. And because of our freedom to choose, the devil can’t force us to sin, but he can tempt and deceive us like he did Eve in the garden.

“In all circumstances, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one.” Ephesians 6:16

Faith in the Lord shields us from the fiery darts of temptation. Trying to entrap people, the enemy uses anything to get us off track. Satan tries to convince us we’ll enjoy the momentary pleasure biting the apple will bring us, as he did Eve. Taking refuge in the Lord and trusting His promises takes the target away from the enemy. The devil’s lies disintegrate in the light of Jesus’s love, and the Creator protects us from the enemy’s fiery darts.

Yes, spiritual warfare exists, but Christ has already won the battle. We can stand firm in our faith, understanding that the Lord protects us from the enemy’s attacks. The devil can try all he wants; he loses every time. In Jesus, we have all we need to defeat Satan. The shield of faith takes away the target and makes the devil’s arrows useless.

Application:

The enemy’s arrows won’t hit us.

Prayer:

Lord, thank You for protecting us from the fiery arrows of the devil. Please help us stand firm in faith, knowing You won’t let the enemy lure us away from You.  Let us live in Christ’s victory every day.

IJNIP. Amen

One-minute read.

You will not fear the terror of the night

Psalm 91:5a

God’s security system operates 24 hours a day. Day or night, the Lord watches over us, protecting us from natural and supernatural causes of fear. Nothing happens without the Creator’s knowledge; we needn’t fear the midnight attack; God’s angels protect us from the spiritual warfare we can’t see.

“And the LORD went before them by day in a pillar of cloud to lead them along the way, and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, that they might travel by day and by night.”  Exodus 13:21

When God led the Israelites through the desert, He did so with fire at night, providing light for them on the journey. During the day, a cloud took the lead. The Shepherd never left their side, protecting and providing for their every need. The Lord still does that for us today. In the darkest night, His light still shines. When we cry out to Jesus for help, He answers, coming to our aid.

Many nights, I’ve had nightmares, waking me from my sleep. When fear grips me, I call out to God for comfort, and He always answers. Knowing our needs before we ask, the Lord protects us from the terror of the night. We can turn to Him with our fears, laying them at the cross and receiving the grace we need to let it go. Jesus did the work so that we could experience salvation through Him.  Nothing separates us from the Savior; He always protects us. You need not fear; God’s got your back.

Application:

We need not fear the terror of the night.

Prayer:

Lord, thank You for protecting us from the terror of the night. Please help us live boldly for You, not fearing anything because we know You protect us. Give us the tools to live out Your purpose for our lives, honoring You with all we do.

IJNIP. Amen