Day 5 of our VBS Reviewing the promise <3
Well we have reached the last day of our VBS for grown ups. I have loved every minute digging into Psalm 91.
It has been a long while since I took the time to follow rabbit trails in Scripture and if you got one thing out of this, I am so thankful but I would have done it all again just for the time I have spent with the Word and a pen and paper and the Holy Spirit whispering to my heart.
I have so many thoughts I could write this morning and words poured out yesterday as I prayed about what to say to end this week of VBS.
Typical of me, my mind wants to present a well-organized conclusion but my heart and soul and spirit are just going to pour out some final thoughts.
Psalm 91: 5 & 6 in the Contemporary English Version says:
You won’t need to worry about dangers by night or arrows by day. And you won’t fear diseases that strike in the dark or sudden disasters at noon.
Oh wow.
Isn’t it the way of life on planet earth?
As a child I dreaded night time. Laying in the bed I was often paralyzed with fear that something was under my bed or in my closet. I was so frightened I couldn’t even get out to run for help as I just knew whatever it was would grab my ankle.
I would call out and my dad would come in and turn on the light. He would look under my bed and in my closet and proclaim my fears unfounded.
But the panic was tangible.
I have told you before I had a little plastic glow in the dark figure of Jesus as the shepherd with some sheep. I would often fall asleep looking at that cheap fluorescent trinket drawing strength in Him who promised to watch over little children.
Arrows by day fly too. Daylight does not protect us from a rude encounter with a driver or a person who loves to stir up strife.
Words and actions of others directed toward us at work or in our home or out on the byways zing us and the fact that they happen in broad daylight makes them even more of an affront.
Diseases…oh yes. They sneak up don’t they? They brood and germinate out of sight.
Cancer
Alzheimers
Chron’s and IBS
Strokes
Heart issues
These are just a few of the more insidious diseases that have fermented in the bodies of people I love.
We didn’t know about them until they manifested in symptoms and then we faced the diagnosis and testing and treatments and we walked through new realities that caused us to say…this isn’t how I thought our life would go.
Sudden disasters at noon?
We know those don’t we? We watched the Twin Towers fall before our eyes.
Some of us have had to leave work to head to the hospital.
Flood waters have risen and people have been escorted from their desks as others munched on their lunch and sometimes trains derail right in the middle of rush hour.
And I want to read the next line that says … You will not be harmed….and I want to ask God how on earth He couldn’t see that those arrows and terrors and diseases and disasters have very much harmed me and people I love.
But I go back and I look again at the beginning of verse 5 to find the promise.
The promise is … we do not need to worry.
And by harmed…it doesn’t mean we won’t be affected…it doesn’t mean we won’t experience the results of these things…
it means that what matters most…our salvation…our position as children of God…His love and care and provision in the midst of it all…will not suffer any damage.
This will get us through.
This will help us hold on.
This will give us the courage to reach out to others around us as they dodge arrows and follow the procedures for treatment and grieve their losses and together, we who dwell in the Shadow of the Almighty…we will hold fast together until He comes and makes all things right and new <3
Your activity today is simply to abide in Him.
No matter what has happened in the past or is happening today, at any sign of worry, remember…you are different. Choose to NOT worry…
Easy? Not at all…so ask Him to help you <3
Your snack today is a comfort food from my past and a reminder that God is the one who comforts you in all seasons.
I got this recipe from a dear friend of my youth, Janey Boyd.
Janey was the antithesis of me…so smart and could play the piano like a pro. She had long blonde hair and a hippie soul and I loved her dearly even if we were polar opposites.
She became a doctor and worked in clinics for little money out in San Diego and when we went to visit her with our three young children we sat up until the wee hours of the morning, just like we used to do in high school…rambling and talking and laughing and philosophizing because time cannot separate good friends. Ever.
Fruit Magic
1 box Jiffy cake mix white or yellow
1 can fruit filling 1 lb 5 oz ( I love cherry for this)
1/4 cup butter
350 degree oven. Put fruit in bottom of greased 8 x8 pan. Sprinkle dry mix over and dot with butter. Bake 45-50 minutes.
Delicious with ice cream of course <3