Get Behind It

My habit for years has been to arise early in the morning to have personal devotions long before the day gets started. For a brief time the habit was interrupted as I adjusted to the new normals of caregiving. Over the last year or so I've been able to reestablish this routine.

Recently, I've been reading through Proverbs and this morning I finished it. I took my time to read it slowly and hopefully absorb some of the vast wisdom that is shared. As I was reading chapter 30 this morning out of nowhere came this psalm-like verse.

Proverbs 30:5 says He is a shield to those who take refuge in Him. I'm not sure exactly why it grabbed my attention so forcefully but I took a few minutes to meditate on it. I know there are several times throughout the Psalms where God is mentioned as being a shield; but what stood out to me this morning was the other part of the verse: to those who take refuge in Him.

He provides the protection but it does us no good if we don't take action on our part. In my mind I could see this huge Goliath-like shield standing out in the open field. If I don't get behind it - I'm open and vulnerable. That seems like a silly image but I think that is the truth conveyed in this verse. God is a shield period. I have to make the move to get behind Him to take advantage of His protection. He's not going to chase us down to shield us. We have to purposefully get behind His provided protection.

This can be very difficult for us Type-A's. It can also be difficult for the caregiver in general. We learn up front to be more aggressive in our advocacy (if we want to see anything get done), we learn too quickly that if anything is going to get done - we have to do it. We become self-sufficient out of necessity. Sitting and waiting on others will get us sitting and waiting. We have to take action to get action; it's part of the package deal.

But at some point we must take action to get behind Him. We have to allow Him to protect us - allow Him to be our shield. It's like God is a huge fort - built for protection. But we gain nothing and are absolutely out there on our own if we don't get inside the fort and take advantage of its protection.

Today I am going to purposefully stop protecting myself, get behind Him and take refuge in Him. I'm going to let some things go and allow Him to shield me, to protect me. I must become vulnerable to Him, honest with Him, and stop protecting myself so that He can be my shield. My meditation today will be on seeking refuge in Him, and letting my own self-made shielding system go. Will you join me?

Shielded from What?

In Genesis 15, God told Abraham, "I am your shield." Why would Abraham need a shield  and why would God need to announce it? It was a little rough going for Abraham at the time, so you have to wonder what he thought about this Divine declaration. It certainly didn't mean that the father of our faith was going to be exempt from adversity. The preceding chapters indicate that Abraham had been going through a tough time.

In chapter 12 he faced a severe famine and had to relocate. After he relocated, he must have experienced fear thinking that the king was going to kill him off to take his wife. Moving (chapter 13) always brings change and that's never comfortable. Then also in chapter 13 his men fought with Lot's men so intensely that they had to part ways. Lot, his nephew was then kidnapped in chapter 14 and Abraham led a small scale war to go get him back! Times were not easy when God said, I am your shield.

Actually, the fact that he even needed to be shielded at all lets us know that life was turbulent. It certainly didn't exempt him from adversity. In the next couple of chapters Sarah and Hagar are going to have a huge fight and Abraham is going to witness the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah.

Once again scriptures demonstrate that faith does not indicate the absence of adversity or in this case, adversities. But it does show us that even in the midst of trials and tribulations God protects us. While He doesn't protect us from the trouble itself - He does protect our souls. He shields the part of us that matters most - the living part. He keeps our souls from damage during life's deepest, darkest moments. And although we are not spared from the trials themselves, we can rest in  those times knowing that He has us in His hands no matter what life throws at us.

Our soul's salvation - our spiritual well being cannot be damaged by the things life hurls at us. In Ephesians 6, Paul tells us above all - take up the shield of faith.  Faith is trusting that God has our back even in the worst of times.

Today I will meditate on the truth that He has me in the palm of His hand and I'll choose to see myself in His heart where my soul is safe from harm. Will  you join me?