The Lord Protects - Psalm 121:7-8

The Lord will protect you from all harm; he will protect your life. The Lord will protect your coming and going both now and forever. Psalm 121:7-8

Trusting His Word

Part of being a believer is trusting His word, trusting Jesus.

This verse in Psalms is part of a group of Psalms called Psalms of Ascent. They were sung or chanted as Jews were walking together to Jerusalem to worship Him.

So how do I believe this Psalm? These verses aren't easy for me.

First, I must acknowledge that I matter to Him. I must because the verse says He will protect me from all harm. Yet I experience hurts and harm.

He will protect my life.

Believers die.

He will protect my coming and going, now and forever.

Forever. Really?

The answer is yes.

But not in the way it might seem. So if on the face of it, I'm having a hard time with a verse, what can I do?

He Never Leaves

1. Ignore it.

2. Take it at face value in every sense of the meaning.

3. Or, I can dig into it and try to figure it out. I know that the Psalmist did not write whimsical, cotton candy poems. He meant what He said.

This is poetry. I do get to try to unlock it's meaning.

One way to look at it is that my life will be protected from being meaningless, or derailed into unrighteousness. That's a win!

Another way to look at it is to know that I am secure for eternity. He will never leave me.

I've read accounts of martyrs who go to their death, horrible deaths, praying for their tormentors and singing. Even the account of Stephen's death in the book of Acts has that sense about it. God's grace was on him in full.

I'm not a scholar. This is me wondering.

I am a believer. I believe His words. That doesn't mean that they are always easy to understand.

Lord, I believe in You. I believe your word. I need your Holy Spirit to help me know truth from error. Lord, give me the grace to believe and understand your inspired word. Today.