June 2, 2008
God will keep me
Scripture: 2 Samuel 22, Psalm 121, 1 Timothy 1-3
2 Sam 22:2 “The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer,
3 my [1] God, my rock, in whom I take refuge,
my shield, and the horn of my salvation,
my stronghold and my refuge,
my savior; you save me from violence.
4 I call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised,
and I am saved from my enemies.”
Psalm 121:7-8 ”The Lord will keep you from all evil;
he will keep your life.
8 The Lord will keep
your going out and your coming in
from this time forth and forevermore.”
These verses bring about so much peace for me. They are like a fire extinguisher to fear. But 6 weeks ago they would not have been. Why? I think I was just bound up in the lie that I could not trust God. That his will might be destruction to me and my family, and how could I bear that from a God I’ve given my whole life to? The truth didn’t change. God has always been in every way good and worthy of my trust. He has always offered his protection and deliverance. He never claimed to be safe and predictable, yet he says he will keep my life from this time forth and forevermore. He says I can call upon him and he will save me. These are truths that are so very important to know and remember and call upon to extinguish the fires of life where the enemy comes in to plant doubt and fear and rebellion.
I need to spend some time asking the question, “do I believe this about God?” Do I believe that he will keep my life from this time forth and forevermore? That he is always there to save me when I call upon him? That he will come near when I come near to him? And I mean to really live these things, not just speak them in my mind and heart and to others. To walk with the knowledge and confidence and assurance that the God of the universe has got me covered; that when fear or circumstances begin to cripple me, he is right there to apply truth to them and extinguish them. That he sees what is really going on and he invites me to have eyes to see it too. And more, that he will fight for me because I am on his side and I am given over to be an instrument of his glory. There is so much freedom there.
Coming back to add something to this: The Lord pointed out another important part of this promise, “The Lord will keep you from all evil;” – in him, the enemy has no power over me.
And,
31 “This God—his way is perfect;
the word of the Lord proves true;
he is a shield for all those who take refuge in him.”
