Wing and Shadow Protection

Divine Protection

If you make the Most High your dwelling—even the LORD, who is my refuge—then no harm will befall you, no disaster will come near your tent. Psalm 91:9-10.


Accidents happen. We’ve all had a few—a fall, a car crash, or a job injury. The average American will be involved in seven car accidents, from major to minor. Personal crises can be tallied, but what about all the misses, the bad things that could have happened but didn’t. I wonder how many mishaps we escaped because the Almighty’s hand shielded us?

When I was an infant, I needed medical help to survive. At my grandmother’s home, I became ill and had a very high fever, and cool baths did nothing to bring the fever within normal range. My frantic parents paced and prayed.

Grandma Turner walked the floor, holding me and whispering again and again, “My sweet baby, my sweet baby.” Mother suspected that my church-going, Lord-loving grandmother was praying, too.

To complicate matters, all the vehicles were gone. Dad walked to my aunt and uncle’s home to borrow their car. My aunt said Dad’s eyes misted as he told them of my condition. Dad drove to the nearest telephone and called the local doctor, who made a house call. Obviously, I lived to write the story that I recently heard.

The family history made me think about all the times we are protected from harm and never even know about them. Psalm 91 is a song of praise to God for just this sort of protection.

“Because he loves me,” says the LORD, “I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.” God also says that those who love him can call out when we see trouble coming, and he will deliver us (14-16).

When Grandmother was in her late 80s I visited her. That evening when I went into her bedroom to say goodnight, she lifted the covers, patted the bed and said, “Hon, climb in here with me.”

I felt like I was four instead of 40. In her tall bed, I snuggled down. In our flannels, we discussed life and God-rescues. Grandma told family stories of hard times and a sawmill accident that could have killed Grandpa, but he was spared to live 30 more years.

I wonder about you, too. How many times has God commanded “his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways”? Or, how often have the angels lifted “you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone” (11-12)?

I wonder?

You may reach Cathy at www.cathymessecar.com