Devotion

My help comes from God

Psalm 121 

I lift up my eyes to the mountains—   where does my help come from?

My help comes from the Lord,   the Maker of heaven and earth.

He will not let your foot slip—   he who watches over you will not slumber;

indeed, he who watches over Israel   will neither slumber nor sleep.

The Lord watches over you—   the Lord is your shade at your right hand;

the sun will not harm you by day,   nor the moon by night.

The Lord will keep you from all harm—   he will watch over your life;

the Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore.

Psalm 121 is a beautiful poem that reminds us that we have a God who looks after us. It is a passage that offers comfort because of who God is and what he’s done. We are reminded that God  keeps us. He’s the creator of heaven and earth - He doesn’t sleep and He’s our shade. Sometimes in the busy pace of life, we look elsewhere for our help, it is important for us to pause, remember and give thanks that God has it all under control. 

In this psalm, there is a beautiful sense of God’s watchfulness and  protection, a promise that no matter what happens, He stands guard over us in the present and in the future. From our human perspective, things may appear completely out of control, yet God is no less active and attentive. He’s no less powerful and in control.

We cannot understand all that God is doing in the world and why he works the way he does. But we can choose to trust that he is faithful and then choose to be faithful in our own life. 

Paul gives us a similar idea in Romans 8, “For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, no things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Whilst God keeping us doesn’t mean that we will never experience difficulties in life, it does mean, though, that evil and suffering, danger and heartache will not have the final word. We only see a sliver of the story now. Someday, it will become clear, and we will “know fully, even as I have been fully known” (1 Corinthians 13:12). 

God, we give thanks that we can lift our eyes and look to you for help and that we can follow you whole-heartedly. Thank you that we can trust that you are watching over us, keeping us and guarding us. Thank you that  the death and resurrection of your Son, Jesus, shows us that evil has already done the worst it can do—and it did not, and will not—win out in the end. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Will Wallace

Principal