Daily Devotional for April 27, 2015

Psalm 91:9-12
The Lord Most High
    is your fortress.
Run to him for safety,
and no terrible disasters
    will strike you
    or your home.
God will command his angels
to protect you
    wherever you go.
They will carry you
    in their arms,
    and you won’t hurt your feet
    on the stones.

Scripture taken from the Contemporary English Version © 1991,1992, 1995 by American Bible Society, Used by Permission.

When I was a little girl, I spent a lot of time in my grandmother’s storm cellar.  We did not have sophisticated weather radar, so when the skies started to look threatening, the women and children of the neighborhood would gather in the storm cellar…and the men would stand on my grandparents’ screened porch and “watch the clouds”.  I don’t really know how long we were in that cellar at one stretch, but it seemed like hours…and often it was at night.

My dad and me - 1958.  I was almost a year old.

There would be times when my sister and I would need a bathroom break, and one of the men would be called to come and wrap us in a quilt and carry us inside...then return us to the cellar.  I remember the safety and comfort of my dad’s arms…and those of my cousin Jim (who was in high school).  Probably my cousin Eddie carried us some, too.  He would have been in high school at that time, and he was always doing something with us.  It is funny to me now to envision a big strapping high school football player spending so much time with little 4 and 5-year-old girls…but he did.  And we always felt safe and protected with our older cousin.

So when I think of God protecting me…I think of these “men” in my life who sheltered me and carried me as a child.  I am the 5-year-old little girl who needs to be wrapped in a quilt and shielded from the wind and rain of life’s storms…carried from one place to the next without my feet ever touching the ground.  God is strong, brave, and able to ensure my safety. In His arms, I am safe, loved, and nurtured.

This is a bittersweet, but comforting image for me. What I wouldn’t give to be that little girl one more time…to have my cousins and my dad standing on the porch at my grandmother’s…ready, willing and able to wrap their arms around me and shield me from harm.  The GOOD NEWS is that I can experience this each and every day with my Heavenly Father…and I do.  I imagine God carrying me…nestling me in His strong arms…telling me that I am safe, and that He will take care of me.  And He does this – and so much more - every single day!

Life’s storms will come for all of us.  But we can all enjoy the protection and comfort of God’s shelter and care.  His arms are always open…He is always ready to meet our needs.  God is standing beside you, “quilt” in hand…ready to wrap you up and carry you wherever you need to go.  Are you ready to let Him?

©2015 Debbie Robus