Summary: <br> If you’re going through a storm in life, this devotional is for you. If you’re just coming out of a storm in life, this devotional is for you. If you see a storm brewing on the horizon, this devotional is for you. There, now we’ve covered everyone haven’t we?<br> Psalm 91: 1-4<br> 1 Those who live in the shelter of the Most High<br> will find rest in the shadow of the Almighty.<br> 2 This I declare about the Lord:<br> He alone is my refuge, my place of safety;<br> he is my God, and I trust him.<br> 3 For he will rescue you from every trap<br> and protect you from deadly disease.<br> 4 He will cover you with his feathers.<br> He will shelter you with his wings.<br> His faithful promises are your armor and protection.<br> We are all seeking shelter from the storms of life. Shelter is our safety. Life is easier when we know we’re safe. We’re all seeking shelter from the potential disasters in life, but the truth is, the only shelter is provided by God. Life is going to happen. People lose their jobs. Cars break down. Storms come. Houses get destroyed. Sickness threatens. Kids grow up and seem to be on a mission to ruin their lives.<br> Disappointment comes knocking on our door and we act so surprised.<br> Hey, this is life. God never promised it would be easy … and here’s why … we don’t grow in easy times.<br> Faith isn’t even necessary in easy times. An arrow is only propelled forward when it is first pulled back. We all so desperately want to move ahead in life, climb the ladder, go to the next level and move on up, BUT FIRST we go backwards.<br> Backwards is preparation for the launch forwards.<br> This scripture reminds us that God is our shelter. We will find rest in the shadow of the Almighty. Now think about that image for a moment. On a hot sunny day, if you sit close enough to a tree, you will enjoy the protection of it’s shadow. It is the tree’s shadow that creates the shade for our benefit. Where is the shadow? Is it over on the other side of the yard? Is it across the street? No, the shadow is right by the tree. It is close. God is saying, my daughter, come get close to me, rest in my shadow. He will stand tall and mighty above you and provide shelter, protection and reprieve in his shadow … but you gotta stop running away from him. To benefit from his shadow, you have to come close to him.<br> God is offering exactly what you need today. What is it you need? My sister, he has it in his shadow – won’t you come close to him today to receive?<br> Verse 3 says “he will rescue you from every trap”<br> He will RESCUE you. Repeat after me – He will rescue me. He will rescue me. Now, notice what rescue means. In order to be rescued, there has to be trouble. The damsel must be in distress to be rescued. You never say, here I am sitting on the beach in this sunny and 80 degree weather with a fruity drink in my hand … someone come rescue me. Please, I can’t take it anymore. Life is perfect here, rescue me! No, you don’t need rescuing when things are perfect. For God to rescue you, you must be threatened. But we sure don’t like that do we? No again, we like safe. We like secure. We like guaranteed paychecks, warranties, bumper to bumper coverage and security. We like it when everyone plays nice, walks in agreement, and sees things exactly the way we do. But that’s not how God works because that’s not where faith grows. That’s not where lives get bigger.<br> So, he allows the traps. Again, if he’s going to rescue you from the trap, he must first allow the trap. The danger, the threat, the worry filled nights DO COME and because they come, then the almighty can swoop in and rescue you. He will cover you and protect you. HE PROVIDES the shelter. Your safety comes from him and sometimes he will allow the storms of life to ...
