Psalm 61:1-8 O God, listen to my cry! Hear my prayer! From the ends of the earth, I cry to you for help when my heart is overwhelmed. Lead me to the towering rock of safety, for you are my safe refuge, a fortress where my enemies cannot reach me. Let me live forever in Your sanctuary, safe beneath the shelter of Your wings! For You have heard my vows, O God. You have given me an inheritance reserved for those who fear Your Name. Add many years to the life of the king! May his years span the generations! May he reign under God's protection forever. May Your unfailing love and faithfulness watch over him. Then I will sing praises to Your Name forever as I fulfill my vows each day.
God is our shelter, a high rock, a fortified tower, a mother hen with her outstretched wings, and a pitched tent.
Pray for the Lord to have mercy and guard yourself with His truth. His truth guards us and helps us. We praise and thank Him in the Name of Jesus.
2 Chronicles 20:1-18 After this, the armies of the Moabites, Ammonites, and some of the Meunites declared war on Jehoshaphat. 2 Messengers came and told Jehoshaphat, “A vast army from Edom is marching against you from beyond the Dead Sea. They are already at Hazazon-tamar.” (This was another name for En-gedi.) 3 Jehoshaphat was terrified by this news and begged the Lord for guidance. He also ordered everyone in Judah to begin fasting. 4 So people from all the towns of Judah came to Jerusalem to seek the Lord’s help. 5 Jehoshaphat stood before the community of Judah and Jerusalem in front of the new courtyard at the Temple of the Lord. 6 He prayed, “O Lord, God of our ancestors, you alone are the God who is in heaven. You are ruler of all the kingdoms of the earth. You are powerful and mighty; no one can stand against you! 7 O our God, did you not drive out those who lived in this land when your people Israel arrived? And did you not give this land forever to the descendants of your friend Abraham? 8 Your people settled here and built this Temple to honor your name. 9 They said, ‘Whenever we are faced with any calamity such as war,[d] plague, or famine, we can come to stand in your presence before this Temple where your name is honored. We can cry out to you to save us, and you will hear us and rescue us.’ 10 “And now see what the armies of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir are doing. You would not let our ancestors invade those nations when Israel left Egypt, so they went around them and did not destroy them. 11 Now see how they reward us! For they have come to throw us out of your land, which you gave us as an inheritance. 12 O our God, won’t you stop them? We are powerless against this mighty army that is about to attack us. We do not know what to do, but we are looking to you for help.” 13 As all the men of Judah stood before the Lord with their little ones, wives, and children, 14 the Spirit of the Lord came upon one of the men standing there. His name was Jahaziel son of Zechariah, son of Benaiah, son of Jeiel, son of Mattaniah, a Levite who was a descendant of Asaph. 15 He said, “Listen, all you people of Judah and Jerusalem! Listen, King Jehoshaphat! This is what the Lord says: Do not be afraid! Don’t be discouraged by this mighty army, for the battle is not yours, but God’s. 16 Tomorrow, march out against them. You will find them coming up through the ascent of Ziz at the end of the valley that opens into the wilderness of Jeruel. 17 But you will not even need to fight. Take your positions; then stand still and watch the Lord’s victory. He is with you, O people of Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid or discouraged. Go out against them tomorrow, for the Lord is with you!” 18 Then King Jehoshaphat bowed low with his face to the ground. And all the people of Judah and Jerusalem did the same, worshiping the Lord.
In God's hand is power and might, He is faithful. We stand in His presence and He hears our pleas. We may be powerless, not knowing what to do, but we fix our eyes on the Lord.
From me. This is one of my favorite stories in the Bible. How often in life do we feel as if everything is coming against us at once! I can't imagine Jehosaphat's terror at seeing the vast armies of these other nation....yet his eyes turned from his enemies to the Lord. And that is our example for living in the troubled waters of life on earth. Psalm 61 gives us beautiful pictures to meditate on as we make our way through trials and tribulations, trusting God's protection and purpose. What encouragement! God is faithful. We will not be shaken. We are never left on our own. We are protected and kept safe....nothing in this world can separate us from God's love. Nothing can steal our place in heaven. Nothing can take us from His hands. We have eternal protection!
Lord, keep our eyes on You, help us to wait on You, and trust You to act when You know is best, in the ways You know are best. Nothing touches our lives that You are surprised by, that You are not able to make beauty from, that will not ultimately be for our benefit and Your glory. Remind us often of Your faithfulness, that we are protected and cared for by You. Thank You.
Hang onto the promises of God, meditate on Psalm 61.
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