Read His Words Before Ours!
Psalm 91
Psalm 90:12
Psalm 94:12-23
Awaken, Day 11
Have you ever wanted to be Wonder Woman: battling injustice and deflecting bullets with the best of them? Some days I feel like I successfully wage war with my surroundings and come out victorious. Other days I feel like I have simply turned into a “wondering woman.”
Did I turn off my curling iron?
Did I leave myself enough travel time or will I be late?
Am I investing my time where I am should be?
I feel like I am failing in one are of my life. Am I failing in all of them?
It is in the moments where I start to question everything as well as in the moments that I believe I have it all together that I realize my focus is solidly on where my feet are standing rather than on the One who created both my feet and the earth beneath them.
While I agree that looking where you are stepping in the natural is a good plan. This helps avoid the dips in the road or the rogue Lego piece in the middle of the night. However, in my spiritual life, my balance starts to falter when I take my eyes off the Lord and focus them on the steps in front of me.
I’ve discovered that I cannot be more interested in where I am going
than I am in the One who has planned my steps.
It is in those times of misaligned focus that I discover I have run ahead of the Lord or lagged behind Him, ironically increasing the travel time rather than speeding it up!
The problem is not in wanting to know where the Lord is leading.
The issue is when I want to know the why or the where MORE than I want to know Him. Psalm 90:12 challenges me to slow down and listen to the One who is wisdom.
It is in those moments where I have learned to be still and know that He is God that I have most profoundly heard His heart and direction for my life.
There, hidden away with Him, I have most understood what being a Wonder Woman in my life really looks like.
Today the words of Psalm 91 (especially in the amplified version) weave their way into my heart and strengthen my backbone of faith. They challenge me to raise my head in confidence in the Lord and the truth of His Word.
His words are alive and active.
I’m not simply eavesdropping on a conversation between the author and the Lord captured so many years ago. These recorded words hold truth for us and resonate with everyday life.
“He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High
shall remain stable and fixed under the shadow of the Almighty
[Whose power no foe can withstand].
I will say of the Lord, He is my Refuge and my Fortress, my God;
on Him I lean and rely, and in Him I [confidently] trust!”
Psalm 91:1-2 AMPC
This is not the stance of a cowering female,
nor is it the stance of an overly confident one.
The balance lies in knowing the Lord and my role in our relationship.
He has me. He will keep me stable. He will be my Refuge. He will be my Fortress.
My job is to stay within His presence and lean on, rely on, and CONFIDENTLY trust in Him.
All of those things take great strength to do, so any thoughts of Christianity being for the weak have long since left my mind.
Psalm 91 begins with the declarations that I seek to live out in my life, declarations that empower and encourage me.
Psalm 91 ends with declarations the Lord makes in return.
These too bring empowerment and encouragement, especially when I read them with my name in them.
“Because he (insert your name here) has set his love upon Me,
therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high, because he knows and understands My name [has a personal knowledge of My mercy, love, and kindness-trusts and relies on Me, knowing I will never forsake him, no, never].
He shall call upon Me and I will answer him;
I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him.
With long life I will satisfy him and show him my salvation.” Psalm 91:14-16 AMPC
These are the things He will do.
In the midst of those precious gifts, He invites us to know and understand His name: His mercy, love, kindness, and His faithfulness.
My emotions and feelings my shift from day to day (or let’s be honest, sometimes moment to moment) causing me to ride the roller coaster of Wonder Woman to wondering woman, but the Lord is constant, stable, and solid.
With my focus on Him and my heart settled in Him,
no circumstances of the day negate the promises the Lord has made nor can they destroy the guaranteed victory awaiting us in heaven.
Until that day arrives, I choose to both rest in Him and rise up for His glory.
Dear sister, His is victorious.
And because He is, so are you.
Dwell in the shadow of His wings and set your love upon Him.
Wonder in that!
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I really appreciate the reminder that my job is to stay in His presence and lean on Him. That doesn’t sound hard, but I often find myself forging ahead of Him or dragging my feet behind Him rather than waiting in His presence and relying on His strength. Thanks for the encouragement to rely on the Lord and allow Him to be my refuge and strength.
You’re so right! It doesn’t sound hard…but the reality is a constant fighting against my flesh and my desire to control. In His presence is the sweetest place to be.
Timely piece for me this morning. Thanks for putting in the time to compose it, Sara!
Seeking to keep my eyes on Jesus with you today.