ON THE VANGUARD

I WILL SAY
“He who 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.’”
Psalm 91:1-2

Last week I traveled out to Texas with my children, my girlfriend, and my girlfriend’s children for the celebration of Passover. It was a great time of her meeting my family, of the kids all playing together, and of us taking our relationship to the next level as I proposed to her under the gazebo. But on the ride home, the smoothness of the week hit a bump…literally. Somewhere in Arkansas, about an hour or so east of Memphis, something lay in the road that wasn’t seen until the last minute, and when seen gave either the option of hitting it or smashing into a semi. Taking the lesser of two evils, the car ran over this black object. We pulled over to the side of the road to investigate the car and off hand I found no damage. The engine was running strong still so we continued home. It wasn’t until we pulled into home that I looked at the front of the van and noticed the damage done to the van’s bumper. As I took it in, my literal first thought was not what the rental company would say, but a thanking God for the safety of all in the car. Whatever lay in the road that night could have been worse, but we were protected by the Almighty God.
I share this story with you, but am convinced you could probably share a story with me also about how God has protected you. And why not, God is a God of love and mercy and He longs that we remain in His safe keeping. But it is this recent activity that has me now reading Psalm 91 again, praying for His hand of safety of me once more as I do not know when or how the enemy will strike. And so, here in the beginning of the chapter, I read, “He who 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.’”
You know me well enough by now to know I am not going to just let these words sit there; I must dive into the Hebrew so that it can be understood correctly. That said, we first look at the word ‘dwells’. The Hebrew word YASHAB refers to a remaining, abiding, or sitting. It also refers to a dwelling of marriage. It is he who marries into the hidden place or covering, CETHER in Hebrew, of the Most High will rest. The name used for the Most High here is ‘ELYON, referring to one exalted above all others. Our ‘shelter’ must be the One who is higher than all others. It is in Him we must LUWN, or ‘rest’. While this word can suggest a nap, the true meaning is the lodging as the night passes. This makes me think we are not to read this as a casual happenstance, but as a purposed stop. And what is our lodging under? It is under the ‘shadow’, the TSEL, of El Shaddai. Thinking on this reminds me of the relief found under a shade tree on a day when the sun is beating down. Just this bit of shade from the shadow of the tree is enough to bring a relief from the sun. And how much more the shadow of our God from the heat of the battle we find ourselves in with the enemy?
The one who marries under the covering of God and purposefully stops in His shadow will say in his heart of the LORD, “He is my refuge, my MACHACEH, and my fortress, MATSUWD.” The Hebrew word we translate as refuge here literally refers to a shelter from rain, storm, or any such danger or falsehood. The term for fortress translates into a net for catching prey, or a stronghold. Think on this for just a minute. In resting in the LORD and under His covering, we can say of our God that He is a shelter we can hide under when danger raises its head, and that He is the trap that our prey and predator steps in. How awesome is God! It is no wonder then that we can also chant it is in Him we can ‘trust’, BATACH, or find our confidence and security within.
So the question that remains, I believe, is this. Are we dwelling and resting in Him? These two verses almost read to me like an if/then statement. If we want the refuge and fortress God offers, then we must dwell and rest in Him. So are we? It is not too late to start, and this step is imperative if we plan to proclaim the remainder of this chapter over our lives. I urge you to consider this action, consider where you are dwelling and resting, and perhaps make a change or two as God leads you.