Lent Devotion: A Saturday Psalm

One of my life's greatest struggles has always been anxiety.  You might not think so when you meet me, but I have really struggled with the overpowering fear that comes along with feeling anxious.  It is never a good thing to be nervous or worried about things to a degree that it affects your ability to live in the present.  I am betting that some of you have faced a similar struggle at some point in your life.  

So for today's Saturday Psalm I have chosen Psalm 91.  This is a Psalm that is often referred to as the "Soldier's Prayer."  It speaks of the power of faith and trust that comes in knowing that God has our back, though that doesn't mean that things are always easy.  Have you ever been overly focused on the "what-if's?" This Psalm reminds us that we dwell in the shelter of the Most High, a safe and restful place.

Psalm 91

1 Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High
    will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
2 I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress,
    my God, in whom I trust.”

3 Surely he will save you
    from the fowler’s snare
    and from the deadly pestilence.
4 He will cover you with his feathers,
    and under his wings you will find refuge;
    his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.
5 You will not fear the terror of night,
    nor the arrow that flies by day,
6 nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness,
    nor the plague that destroys at midday.
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 observe with your eyes
    and see the punishment of the wicked.

9 If you say, “The Lord is my refuge,”
    and you make the Most High your dwelling,
10 no harm will overtake you,
    no disaster will come near your tent.
11 For he will command his angels concerning you
    to guard you in all your ways;
12 they will lift you up in their hands,
    so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.
13 You will tread on the lion and the cobra;
    you will trample the great lion and the serpent.

14 “Because he loves me,” says the Lord, “I will rescue him;
    I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.
15 He will call on me, and I will answer him;
    I will be with him in trouble,
    I will deliver him and honor him.
16 With long life I will satisfy him
    and show him my salvation.”

It isn't as simple as saying that if we trust in God everything in our lives will go just as we desire, or that we will not face consequences of our choices.  The good news that I find here is that God is in control of the big picture.  While I get caught up all too often in the smallest details, fretting over the what-if's, God is continuing to sustain and Create - holding the big-picture of the world together.  

With what do you struggle?  How does this Psalm speak to you?  What does it mean for God to be your protection, you shelter, your salvation?

Prayer:  Lord, help me to rest in you.  Help me to find peace even in the things of the world that I do not fully understand.  Help me to trust in the power of your protection and shelter.  Today I pray that you would be present with all who suffer, with all who feel alone, with all who long to know what it is to be truly loved.  Help me too, to understand.  Amen.