Life In the Battle!

Some days are just hard.  Life is hard.  Most days, I just roll right along, taking it all in stride.  I am a pretty optimistic person and I really like to see the silver lining.  But sometimes, a day or two comes at me and knocks me right off my sunny disposition.  Whether it is trauma or disappointment or unmet expectations, there are just some days that I don't come through unscathed.

I don't know why those days surprise me so much.  I know life isn't perfect.  I remember the warning Jesus gave when he said, "In this life you will have trouble."  I have certainly experienced enough to know that trouble does, in fact, come.  So why, then, does it always catch me unprepared?

Thankfully, I also remember the other half of the statement Jesus made in John 16:33.  "In this life you will have trouble, but take heart!  I have overcome the world."  What comfort in the midst of awful stuff!  I am not alone, God already has it handled!  Psalm 91 is one of my favorite verses to turn to when I come upon days like these!

Psalm 91

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 the night,

Nor the arrow that flies by day,

Nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness,

Nor the plague that destroys at midday.

A thousand may fall at your side,

Ten thousand at your right hand,

But it will not come near you.

You will only observe with your eyes,

And see the punishment of the wicked.

If you say, "The Lord is my refuge,"

And you make the Most High your dwelling,

No harm will overtake you,

No disaster will come near your tent.

For He will command His angels concerning you,

To guard you in all your ways;

They will lift you up in their hands,

So that you will not strike your foot against a stone.

You will tread on the lion and the cobra,

You will trample the great lion and the serpent.

"Because he loves me," says The Lord, "I will rescue him;

I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.

He will call on me and I will answer him;

I will be with him in trouble,

I will deliver him and honor him.

With long life I will satisfy him and show him my salvation."

This entire passage reminds me that we live this life in the midst of a great battle, but I have the protection of the One who has already defeated the enemy!  I love the imagery of resting in the shadow of the Almighty and finding refuge under His wings!  As I close my eyes tonight, I know I can sleep because He is watching over me!