Your Shade

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w_gCSJI6DKM

Jireh ~ Elevation Worship and Maverick City

The Lord is your keeper; the Lord is your shade … Psalm 121:5 AMPC

We loved playing hide-and-seek as children. My grandparents had the best house for it: they had tall bushes and trees near the front of the house and a way to hide under the front porch. It didn’t take me long to figure out that the closer I got to the house, under the porch, the more hidden I was in the deeper shadows. Of course, that meant I had to get over my fear of whatever else might also be under the porch. We don’t often associate shadows with God, but Psalm 31:20 says, “In the cover of your presence you hide [those who take refuge in you],” (ESV).

Psalm 121:5 says the Lord is our shade. As a shade, He is always near, never further away than your shadow. He provides protection, both from the toils of the day and from enemies. And as your shade, the Lord gives you refreshment: The Lord will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail, (Isaiah 58:11 NIV).

I hope that today, your life is as light and easy as a child at play. However, on both light days and on darker, harder days, remember the child playing hide-and-seek, who discovered the secret, hidden place:

Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.” Surely he will save you from the fowler’s snare and from the deadly pestilence. He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart. You will not fear the terror of night, nor the arrow that flies by day, nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness, nor the plague that destroys at midday. ~ Psalm 91:1-6 NIV

©Heather Potts 2021

Known

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4BhTAJ49MQ0&list=RDdH0PmaKxOtA&index=4

Nothing Else ~ Cody Carnes

The Lord is good, A strength and stronghold in the day of trouble; He knows [He recognizes, cares for, and understands fully] those who take refuge and trust in Him.

Nahum 1:7 AMP

Three days ago, we learned that our downstairs neighbor, who’d lived alone the full 3 ½ years we’ve known him, chose to live and die alone. I use the term “known” loosely, because there was very little we knew about him, including that he had family nearby, who clearly loved him.

What is a life that’s known? What does it take to love and be loved by others? I think it starts with courage and choice. Jesus demonstrated that for us by His sacrifice. His desire to know and be known by us, that not one of us would be lost to Him, compelled Christ to the Cross. Knowing that He desired to know and be known by you, when did you choose Him? When did you ask Jesus to be your Savior, that you’d get to know Him?

Like everyone our age, I remember where I was and what I was doing 20 years ago, today. Today was life-changing for so many. While there are hundreds of thousands of stories, I pray that this one touches your heart:

He got up, got dressed for work, kissed his girlfriend good-bye and headed out the door.  Today was the day it would all change for him.  He was starting a new job, a new way of life.  After orientation, his boss showed him to an office and asked him to file while she was in a meeting.  A while later, he began to hear a commotion.  People were yelling and running.  He stuck his head out of the office and saw the burning twin towers on TV and the reporter talking about the concerns for the President.  Then someone in the office shouted, “Air Force One is across the street!  Should we evacuate the building?” No one answered. All eyes were locked on the TV in horror. He moved back into the office and closed the door, his mind whirling.

 

Standing in that office, leaning against the door, he was afraid.  “What if I die today?  What if they take out the President’s plane and this office with it?  What if my girlfriend was right about Jesus and I miss it?”  He began to remember what his friends had said one night after work, so many years ago.  They had talked about a Savior. Not a mean God, but One who loved him and who would accept him.  Sliding down to the floor, he said, “God I give you my heart.  From this day forward, I’m Yours.”

 

In Psalm 23, David called the Lord his “Shepherd”, someone who knew David: his needs, desires, wounds, and even joys. David has been called a man after God’s heart, not because he lived a perfect life, but because he chose to live a known life--known to and by his Savior, the way we all long to be known.

I don’t know your story, or how you were affected by that terrible, dark day.  I do know that while so many lives were lost that day, at least one soul was saved, because he chose to be known by his Savior. Tuesday, September 11, 2001 was the day my husband gave his life to Christ! 

Friends, my prayer is that you will choose to not live this life alone, but will be courageous enough to choose a known life--both by your Savior and by those around you.

©Heather Potts 2021

Mountains

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RhxSJlwzrws

Speak to the Mountains ~ Church of the City

I look up to the mountains;

    does my strength come from mountains?

No, my strength comes from God,

    who made heaven, and earth, and mountains.

~ Psalm 121:1-2 MSG

Being sick is the pits! Truly, all trials are at least annoying and more often terrifying and draining. But what do we do when we’re stuck in these pits, these trials of sickness and affliction? We cry out for help. David was no different. 

I’ve heard that Bible scholars believe when David wrote Psalm 121, he was looking at the mountains for the soldiers who would pass over them. Because mountains have always been a symbol of strength, an immovable force, David might have been looking to the mountains searching for help. Don’t we all look to the mountains in our lives for help?

When we’re sick, don’t we look to doctors, medicine, or supplements to make us well? When we - or our loved ones - are battling addiction or mental/emotional distress, don’t we look to counselors and therapists for the answers? Of course we do, because those are the tools God gave us to help during trials. But those are tools and created things, which was David’s point when he answered his own question, “Does my strength come from the mountains? No, my strength comes from God, who made heaven, and earth, and mountains.”

In Revelation 1:8, Jesus reminds us who He is, “I am the Alpha and the Omega...who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.” From beginning to ending, as the Almighty, Jesus is and will supply everything we’ll ever need. When we’re sick, Jehovah Rapha is our healer. When we’re feeling lost, Jehovah Raah is our Shepherd and guide. When we’re feeling abandoned and alone, Jehovah Shammah is the Lord who’s there. When we’re in the fight for our lives, our marriage, or our families, Jehovah Nissi is the Banner over us.

Whatever you’re in need of today, remember your help and strength don’t come from the created things that God will use. Your help comes from the Creator, Himself, who made heaven, and earth, and mountains.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TfiYWaeAcRw

Shoulders ~ for KING & COUNTRY

©Heather Potts 2021