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Lord, I seek refuge in You;
let me never be disgraced.
Save me by Your righteousness.
Listen closely to me; rescue me quickly.
Be a rock of refuge for me,
a mountain fortress to save me.
For You are my rock and my fortress;
You lead and guide me
because of Your name.
You will free me from the net
that is secretly set for me,
for You are my refuge.
Into Your hand I entrust my spirit;
You redeem me, Lord, God of truth.
Psalms 31:1-5
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As for God, His way is perfect;
The word of the LORD is proven;
He is a shield to all who trust in Him.
For who is God, except the LORD?
And who is a rock, except our God?
It is God who arms me with strength,
And makes my way perfect.
Psalms 18:30-32
“Mom! its not working!” “Guys, how are you doing it?” As my boys proceed to tell me how they are using the way they devised (I don’t even know how they came up with this method), I chuckle to myself, knowing that it wouldn’t work, and knowing that this was going to happen. They weren’t going to do it the way I suggested they do it because I have given birth to the most independent and stubborn boys in the world. Who knew that lining books back into a bookshelf could be so difficult?
This isn’t new, all three of my children have the “I’m going to try it my way first,” mentality when they set out to accomplish tasks. Many times the end result is less than what we all hoped for. Similar situations are seen in the daily lives of most parents, even our Heavenly Father. His children are stubborn, we like to try it our way. He tells us or shows how to do something and we turn around and do it how we see fit, and the outcome is always less than we hoped for.
Though my ways are far from perfect, my boys have learned that they may work better. But His ways are perfect, and when we follow His ways, He will shield us from the unpleasant side effects of trying our own ways first. Thankfully God is forgiving, and we get do-overs. He gives us chance after chance to do it His way. Time after time, He has shown me that His Word is proven. Time and time again He has been my Shield, my Strength, and my Rock. He has done so even when I tried my way first…when I didn’t trust Him as I should have. He was waiting for me, His arms outstretched, ready to show that His words rang true.
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Let’s Pray: Dear Heavenly Father, You know better than we do that we don’t always do things Your way, yet You love us regardless. We fight, we argue, we do things how we want to. But You are always there, arms outstretched. Always our Shield, always our Rock, always our Strength. Thank You. In Jesus name, we pray, Amen.
Throughout this week, I have been drawn to a similar theme written about by my fellow devotional writers—God is my Rock. Actually, He is (or, as Cheris reminded us on Wednesday) HE IS! These ladies have been writing from the perspective of Psalm 62.
Ann wrote about our Lord Jesus—our solid Rock—and how we have been given salvation and how we are covered through His sacrifice for us. Laura shared about how our God is in control; and, as The Rock, He is our Shield, our Provider, our Defender. Cheris reminded us that we don’t have to worry and think ‘what if?’ because we know that HE IS! He is faithful and always will be. Ahmee told us a story about a little one in her life who needed to trust. Just like herself (and us, too!), she needs to trust in, have faith in, and believe God’s Word.
Listen to a few selected verses from Psalm 62.
For God alone my soul waits in silence; from Him comes my salvation.
He alone is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall not be greatly shaken.
For God alone, O my soul, wait in silence, for my hope is from Him.
He only is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall not be shaken.
On God rests my salvation and my glory; my mighty rock, my refuge is God.
Trust in him at all times, O people; pour out your heart before Him;
God is a refuge for us. Selah.
Once God has spoken; twice have I heard this:
That power belongs to God, and that to You, O Lord, belongs steadfast love.
The psalmist pours out his heart uttering these words of praise! He uses definitive words that communicate the concepts of strength, steadiness, reliability and permanence. He writes that his Rock is his refuge, his fortress, and his salvation, his glory, his hope. And that, because He is (HE IS!) then the psalmist trusts in Him, rests on Him, waits for Him, and is not shaken. When you read these terms, what thoughts come up in Your mind and heart? I think of comfort, of love, of peace, of hope, of strength. I think of my God…Who is (He IS!) strong, steady, reliable, faithful! Who is my Rock, my Refuge, my Fortress, my Hope, my Glory, my salvation. He IS…He really, really, really IS!
Trust in him at all times, O people; pour out your heart before Him;
God is a refuge for us. Selah.
Psalm 62:8
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Thank You, Lord! Thank You for being my Rock! Thank You for being able to place my total trust, my hope, my faith…my entire self…in Your arms. Thank You for Your grace, Your mercy, Your peace, Your love! In Jesus’ name. Amen.
Psalm 62:1-2
We are going through a trying time right now. It is so trying that I have made myself physically incapacitated to the point where there are some days (the days I worry too much) that I can barely function. I know that I need to leave this trying time in God’s hands, but being human, that is hard to do. I have always tried to control anything that I do…including flying on an airplane. My dear husband got me on a plane in April. I loved the thrill of flying, but I was still scared that something could happen. I often feel as if I can prevent something from happening if I am the one in the driver’s seat.
Yet, I know in my heart and in my brain that God is in control. He is my Rock. He is my Shield. There have been times that I have not prayed about the situation, and then it seems like it gets worse. I pray about it, and it seems like the situation is getting better. I need to constantly put this problem in God’s hands, but being human that is hard.
When we accept God’s salvation, we put on the Shield of God. God becomes our Defender, our Provider, and our Rock. He moves with us. He is in the passenger seat when you are driving down the highway at 85 mph or when you are enjoying a nice sunset on the beach. God is with you no matter where you are.
As we move on in our trying time, I need to silently listen for God’s word. I know that eventually He will answer my prayer about getting to the end of this. (It may take a few years to do it, but the end will come.) I am going to have to be patient and let God lead. God’s leadership and love is what should get us through anything—no matter how big or small.
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Dear heavenly Father, thank You for Your salvation and being our Rock. Without You, we would not be able to stand strong in any trying time. Without You, we would fall and not be able to get back up. Thank You for being our Rock and Salvation. Thank You for defending us against evil. In Jesus name, Amen.
