May 16, 2017
TERROR OF THE NIGHT? ARROWS BY DAY? GOD PROVIDES THE SHIELD THAT COMBATS THESE EVILS!
Psalm 91
Michelle Humann
Central Truth
The Lord is our protector. He longs to shelter us and provide a safe dwelling place within Him. Remaining close to Him through difficult times assures that He will be with us through it all, even when it can feel like He is not.
Key Verse | Psalm 91:14–15
"Because he holds fast to me in love, I will deliver him;
I will protect him, because he knows my name.
When he calls to me, I will answer him;
I will be with him in trouble;
I will rescue him and honor him."
(Psalm 91:14-15)
Psalm 91
My Refuge and My Fortress
1
He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High
will abide in the shadow of the Almighty.
2
I will say
1
91:2
Septuagint He will say
to the LORD, “My refuge and my fortress,
my God, in whom I trust.”
3
For he will deliver you from the snare of the fowler
and from the deadly pestilence.
4
He will cover you with his pinions,
and under his wings you will find refuge;
his faithfulness is a shield and buckler.
5
You will not fear the terror of the night,
nor the arrow that flies by day,
6
nor the pestilence that stalks in darkness,
nor the destruction that wastes at noonday.
7
A thousand may fall at your side,
ten thousand at your right hand,
but it will not come near you.
8
You will only look with your eyes
and see the recompense of the wicked.
9
Because you have made the LORD your dwelling place—
the Most High, who is my refuge
2
91:9
Or For you, O LORD, are my refuge! You have made the Most High your dwelling place
—
10
no evil shall be allowed to befall you,
no plague come near your tent.
11
For he will command his angels concerning you
to guard you in all your ways.
12
On their hands they will bear you up,
lest you strike your foot against a stone.
13
You will tread on the lion and the adder;
the young lion and the serpent you will trample underfoot.
14
“Because he holds fast to me in love, I will deliver him;
I will protect him, because he knows my name.
15
When he calls to me, I will answer him;
I will be with him in trouble;
I will rescue him and honor him.
16
With long life I will satisfy him
and show him my salvation.”
Dive Deeper | Psalm 91
I remember December 2015 very clearly. I was driving home from Watermark's Christmas Concert that Shane & Shane, Phil Wickham, and Micah Tyler put on every year. This particular year, Shane & Shane had released their new album titled Psalms II. One of the songs on this album happens to be Psalm 91 (On Eagles' Wings), and when I heard it for the first time, it broke me down to the point that I had to pull the car over and sob my way through it.
You see, I'd never truly understood that psalm before. Sure, I'd read it, but I didn't really read it. God took that moment in the car to truly help me hear it—to open my eyes and my ears to it—and He did it at just the right moment. God's perfect timing.
God needed my eyes and my ears to be open to this particular passage because He knew what was going to be in my path; or rather, I should say that He knew what I was going to be in the path of. You know those things that you get here in Texas that we don't get back in Connecticut? Yep, you guessed it—a TORNADO. The one that hit on December 26. The one that took out three quarters of my roof and blew out an entire wall. Yeah, God knew that was coming, and He prepared my heart for it.
Throughout the Bible, He has promised to protect us. In Isaiah 43:1b-3, God says, "Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you. For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior."
We came out on the other side of that tornado filled with peace in knowing that God was with us that evening and all of our days on earth.
Discussion Questions
1. Everyone has troubles in their lives at one point or another. Think of your most recent "trouble" and how you responded to it (2 Corinthians 4:17, NIV).
2. Do you trust God in all things or just some things (Proverbs 3:5-6)?
3. When was the last time you thanked God for your trouble? That might sound like a silly question, but we should remember that God's plan for us is always good. We might not ever know the reasons behind the why, and it might be really difficult to believe that at times; but He knows the reasons why, and we should be thankful for that (Ephesians 5:20).