Tuesday, December 3, 2012

God Protects His Own

The LORD is my strength, my shield from every danger. I trust in him with all my heart. He helps me, and my heart is filled with joy. I burst out in songs of thanksgiving. -- Psalm 28:7

Last year was one of those years I’d really rather not repeat. Nothing especially bad happened. Nothing especially good happened either. It was a year when joy seemed to evaporate even as new, wonderful challenges emerged.

Have you ever been surrounded by people who wish you harm? Maybe a co-worker or family member? A neighbor or former friend? You forgive and you forgive but the strain of it all takes an emotional toll. It just drains your energy.

David understood. He’d done all he could to support Saul and yet this man was determined to kill David. It’s easy to say Saul was possessed by Satan or he was insane. Probably both. But those things didn’t negate David’s very real danger or his anguish at constantly being on guard for the next attack.

Sometimes I feel ridiculous. It’s so easy to laugh off one small incident. Maybe even two or three. But one by one they add up and one day you look around and you aren’t laughing anymore. Because it isn’t funny. It’s sad. And it hurts. Do you understand? Have you faced that kind of enemy? Maybe you’re facing that enemy now.

God gets it. He understands. He strengthens me. He strengthens you. He shields us from danger and fills us with joy. It’s how we can face each day. It’s how we withstand the barbs and lies, the backstabbing and insults.

I’ll probably never really understand why some people need to cut other people down to feel better about themselves. And I’ll never understand why some people lie easily and don’t seem to think anything is wrong with doing so. But I don’t have to let their actions destroy me. Neither do you.

God sustained David. His love filled David with joy. And it can fill us with joy as well. We can withstand anything because we know that God has already won the war. He has defeated the enemy. God will protect us from those who seek to harm us. Trust Him. He won’t let you down.