No Evil Shall Befall Thee

Psalm 91 KJV

He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.

I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust.

Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence.

He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler.

Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day;

Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness; nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday.

A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh thee.

Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the wicked.

Because thou hast made the Lord, which is my refuge, even the most High, thy habitation;

There shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling.

For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways.

They shall bear thee up in their hands, lest thou dash thy foot against a stone.

Thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder: the young lion and the dragon shalt thou trample under feet.

Because he hath set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high, because he hath known my name.

He shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honour him.

With long life will I satisfy him, and shew him my salvation.

God's Peace - Pr. J.

Depression Flees Under His Wings

He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High
Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.
I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress;
My God, in Him I will trust.”
Surely He shall deliver you from the snare of the fowler
And from the perilous pestilence.
He shall cover you with His feathers,
And under His wings you shall take refuge;
His truth shall be your shield and buckler.
You shall not be afraid of the terror by night,
Nor of the arrow that flies by day,
Nor of the pestilence that walks in darkness,
Nor of the destruction that lays waste at noonday.
A thousand may fall at your side,
And ten thousand at your right hand;

But it shall not come near you.

                                            Psalm 91:1-7 KJV

Depression and anxiety afflicts us all from time to time. As a young person, it hit me a lot. I still get depressed from time to time. When I do I focus on the Lord, not on myself. What does the Lord want me to do? Love others? Help others? Or, focus on my pain and suffering? When I ask myself these questions, the answer is easy. It is to focus on others and on the good gifts that God has given me. The blessings are beyond counting and life is good because God is good. The gifts that He has given me are not just for my sake; but, to be used for the sake of others around me.

The verses from Psalm 91 were always a great help to bring me out of the darkness of depression. I read them often and prayed them often. They are a reminder that God is with us and for us. We can dwell in His shelter or we can step out of that shelter into depression, fear, and the anxiety that are brought on by insisting on doing what we want and finding out that what we want is not right nor good for us or for anyone around us. 

Take refuge in the Lord and He shall cover you with His loving and protective feathers. You will find peace that you cannot even imagine right now as you rest in His shelter. Trust in the Lord and in His truth and you will know peace.

God's Peace - Pr. J

Too Much Laughter

Woe unto you that are full! for ye shall hunger. Woe unto you that laugh now! for ye shall mourn and weep.

                                (Luke 6:25 KJV)

I am not all that comfortable being around people who laugh all of the time. I am not saying that we should never be joyful. But, it makes me very uncomfortable to be around people who think unless the outcome of a conversation is something that makes everyone laugh it has been an unfruitful conversation.

I simply do not view laughter or even happiness as the reason for being. If it were the reason for living then it would stand that those who grieve; those who are depressed would have no reason for being. That is a false narrative. In fact, I cannot help but wonder if the fact, that society wants us to believe that in order for our lives to be validated we must be happy, is the reason for so much depression today. We end up depressed because we are not as happy as the world seems to promise us we should be. 

Life is tough. Not everyone should be expected to be filled with laughter all of the time. We must give others (and ourselves) the time and opportunity to grieve; to be sad; to be contemplative. 

There is a difference (at least for me) between being happy, happy, happy, laughing all of the time and being joyful. Each and everyone of us have a purpose; a reason for being. Joy can be found in having a purpose and reaching toward fulfillment of that purpose. Joy can be found as we face challenges of the day knowing that God is with us and that in Him, His will will be accomplished. He is with us and so we can face another day and yet another challenge with peace and with joy.

Whatever we deem the purpose of life to be; I simply cannot accept that it is to make everyone laugh unless your profession is as a comedian. We cannot laugh away the troubles of the world. Troubles must be dealt with not hidden under laughter. If your neighbor needs help; help him or her as they face their trials. It does no long-term good to sit down and tell them jokes. There are times when you may have to sit beside them quietly and grieve with them. You just might have to actively do something. If your neighbor is in trouble; maybe, you just may need to assist them in some way to face the challenges of the day. 

"A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance.." (Eccl 3:4) There is a time for all of these things according to the author of Ecclesiastes. We should know the difference. Laughter is not the answer to all of life's experiences. There is a time for laughter; but, it is not what we should expect of every outcome. 

I am very uncomfortable with people who think that laughter has to be the outcome of every visit; every meeting. Experience has (unfortunately) taught me not to trust those who laugh too much. And, yes, I do laugh and even smile quite a bit. But, tears also are a part of my experience. They are a part of the human experience. Grieving is a part of life's experience, as well. There is both a time to weep and a time to laugh. Let us do both as the situations we find ourselves lead us to.

God's Peace - Pr. J

P.S. Sorry for the rambling today. I am not against laughter. I am leery of those who think that we must laugh all of the time or that we are less than.

Salty

You are the salt of the earth; but if salt has lost its taste, how can its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything, but is thrown out and trampled under foot. (Matt 5:13 NRSV)

I am a salt eater. I like seasoning in my food. My husband tries to avoid salt for health reasons. But, I do not. Often, when cooking, I will sneak a pinch in. I would rather have it absorbed into the food and not tossed on top of it. Tossed on top, the food becomes way too salty and the flavor of the food itself is lost.

I, like the food I eat, can be a bit "salty" at times. Sometimes, I have to apologize for seasoning my attitude just a little too much. But, I do not intentionally add salty language or attitude for the sake of effect. When I exhibit "saltiness" it is a part of who I am. It is mixed in with the rest of my personality or being.

My saltiness is particularly exhibited when I encounter Christians who claim to be Christians; yet, their lack of saltiness for the Lord and their false gods are clearly visible. Yes, I get a bit defensive and a little offensive when false gods rear their ugly heads in the world and "Christians" around me.

Long ago, I figured out that God did not intend for his people to be door-mats to be stepped upon like the salt that has been thrown out in Jesus' parable. He expects us to stand up and do the right thing. He expects us to worship Him and to follow in the footsteps of the one who died that we might live with Him.

I do not anticipate losing my saltiness. Sometimes, we have to be a bit salty so that the Word and will of God is known by others. We're not of much use if we sit around and let the Word of God be ignored or disrespected. If anything should be trampled under foot, it should be the false gods that we have a tendency to gravitate towards.

May your life be filled with the salt of life. May the Lord, the One God, fill you with His Word, with His truth, and with His life.

God's Peace - Pr. J.

I Saw You

When Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him, he said of him, “Here is truly an Israelite in whom there is no deceit!”  Nathanael asked him, “Where did you get to know me?” Jesus answered, “I saw you under the fig tree before Philip called you.” Nathanael replied, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!” John 1:47-49 NRSV

Some of us take a long time before we make the move to get to know Jesus. It is sometimes even longer before we begin to actually follow him. It was not so with the first disciples. They pretty much dropped everything immediately to get to know him and to follow him. Nathanael was amazed that Jesus knew who he was before he met him. This knowledge was enough to get Nathanael to want to know Jesus.

It might take us some time to even begin to get an inkling as to who this Jesus is. But, it takes no time for Jesus to get to know us. Whether we know him or not, he knows us. He has always known us. He is always with us. He knows what we are doing even before we do it. He is the Son of God, after all! May God help us all to get to know more fully the King of Israel; the King of Kings?

God's Peace - Pr. J