Dwell

Over the past couple of years, I have been in love with the Book of Psalms. I can now see the reasons why God has put the desire in my heart for this book. The past year has been a difficult one for me and the promises of protection have given me so much peace.

Psalm 91 has been a chapter that the Lord started calling me to last fall right before my beloved daughter became very sick in the hospital. Isn’t it just mind boggling when you realize that God has been preparing you for something that you had no idea was approaching? I had been drawn to it for several months and copied my favorite of those verses down on a notepad, memorizing them over time and speaking them in my prayers. Little did I know how much I would rely on Psalm 91. Those memorized verses were a lifeline for me as I rode in the ambulance with my baby girl to get the care she needed. Those memorized verses were a lifeline for me as I sat by her bed, having to watch her endure so much pain and fight with all she had to get better.  Those verses were also a lifeline during the tough winter months of recovery and our longing for spring. Now those verses continue as a lifeline as spring has arrived, but it has brought COVID-19 with it. Again, mind boggling when God prepares you and knows what you need before you see it!

As the whole world has come to a screeching halt and entered this difficult time together, I see God also calling so many others to Psalm 91. It is full of God’s protective promises for His people. Psalm 91 describes protection over pestilence, terrors, plagues, and destruction. Verse 3 states, "For it is He who delivers you from the snare of the trapper and from the deadly pestilence". Later, verse 10 reads, “No evil will befall you, nor will any plague come near your tent”. In one of my favorite verses, Psalm 91:11, David writes, “For He will give His angels charge concerning you, to guard you in all your ways”. Over and over He reminds us that He is our deliverer, protector, and our place of refuge. Thank you, Lord, for these beautiful reminders that there is safety under the shadow of your wings!

As the Lord has given me peace and eased my fears through these promises of protection, He has also brought my attention to something important that we need to be careful not to miss. While He wants us to know His power and the security in Him, we must be careful to see what He desires from His people. Instead of putting all our focus on what God will do for us, we must be diligent to look at the significant part that His people play in Psalm 91. Verse 1 states, “He who DWELLS in the shelter of the Most High, will abide in the shadow of the Almighty”.  The word, dwell, has been the Lord’s message to me. He has been teaching me through His promises, that there is protection to those that SEEK Him, REST in Him, and DWELL in Him. I have had to continually ask myself through this global crisis we find ourselves in, “Where am I dwelling: In Him or somewhere else?" I have found myself many times glued to social media, news outlets, and articles surrounding the pandemic. I am a researcher by nature and a worrier by nature which means it is insanely easy for me to get stuck in a dwelling place I absolutely don’t need to be in!  So, I am trying to be more careful, watching where I dwell. Psalm 91:1 is just one of many verses in this chapter that is focused on our actions or behavior. Here are a few more.

Psalm 91:2 “I will SAY to the Lord, My refuge and my fortress, My God IN WHOM I TRUST!”

Psalm 91:4 “He will cover you with His pinions, And under his wings YOU MAY SEEK refuge.”

Psalm 91:9 “For you have MADE THE LORD, MY REFUGE, Even the Most High, YOUR DWELLING PLACE.”

Psalm 91: 14 “Because he has LOVED Me, therefore I will deliver him; I will set him securely on high, because he has KNOWN MY NAME.”

Psalm 91:15 He will CALL UPON ME, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will rescue him and honor him.

So, while we have this beautiful assurance that He will provide and protect, He is calling on us to truly love Him, know Him, proclaim His name, trust in Him, seek Him, and dwell in Him -- not for what He will do for us, but because He alone is the the Most High.