Psalms 91:2
"I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust."
Often we put our trust in things and people without really thinking about it. For instance, when you go into a room that's dark you automatically, without thinking about it one little bit, turn on the light switch fully expecting it to work. No surprise when it does what it was intended to do, is there? Why is that? Because you trusted the light switch to work and you trusted the light to come on. You paid the light bill. The switch is working. The result is the light coming on.
I realize that this sounds pretty basic. The thing is, it should be just as basic to count on the Lord for everything in our lives, yet do we really do that? Sadly, for the most part we do not. Folks want to trust the Lord but when push comes to shove, they fall back on things they know and do the quick fix which many times ends up being less than the Lord wants for them. From the first time I can remember, I was taught to be self reliant, to do things myself, count on myself. You've heard it before. 'If you want a job done right, do it yourself!' But is that really the best way? The Psalmist talks about the Lord as if He is the safety net, the place of security. Now, why would he do that? His trust in the Lord God shows in each verse and line. He tells us right from the beginning in the first verse about being in the shadow of the Almighty.
"I will say of the Lord"
Let's just stop a moment. What can you say of the Lord? What has He done for you? If you can't recall anything that He has done, please take one deep breath. There, now you have something that He has done for you. What do you mean? If it were not for the Lord, you would not be taking that breath. When the Psalmist talks about the Lord, it is with reverence. He cares deeply about what he says concerning the Father. This tells me that the next line should be very important to the speaker.
"He is my refuge and my fortress"
Picture in your mind the sturdiest building around. Construct a wall around it made of the best and strongest material available. Nothing can come in without permission. No outside interference of any kind is possible. Does this sound safe and secure to you? It does to me. 15 times in the scriptures there is mention of a 'fortress' and in most cases, it means a stronghold, a place that is solid, fortified and secure. This would, indeed, be a refuge. 46 times, the bible talks about the word 'refuge' and each time it is saying that a particular place is a haven of safety, secure, restful. The Psalmist is making it quite clear that under the shadow of the Lord is where he chooses to be safe. His confidence is in the Lord to provide this environment.
"my God; in Him will I trust"
The speaker declares Who he is talking about, then proceeds to tell us that above all, he trusts the Lord. It almost sounds like he repeats himself from verse one, doesn't it? One of the things I have learned over and over again with the Lord is that if something is repeated, then it gets more important with each restating. In the verse one, he talked about a secret place, followed closely by being in the shadow of the Almighty. Now, he tells us that this secret place is a stronghold, a fortified place, making it more secret and secure. Then he relates that he trusts in the Being that maintains this secret place.
We must learn to put our trust in our Father first. He is our Creator, our Provider, our Safety. It is possible to use this Psalm as a prayer. I've found out that putting myself into the Psalm makes it personal to me. When the Lord gets personal, THEN you have a remarkable relationship with Him. I want to continue that into fellowship, don't you?
Would you like to know the Father better? Take this opportunity to look over the whole Psalm, putting yourself into the place of the speaker. At first, it may seem difficult to do but once you start doing this, you will find it becomes easy. And then, one day you will notice that you and the Lord are walking closer together! What a blessing of God.
Click here for Psalm 91:1
Click here for Psalm 91:3
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