Today’s scripture: Psalm 124 (NRSV) (The Message) (KJV) What might God be saying to me?
My thoughts (Sue Robinson):
I love how this psalm begins. I can just hear David saying these words. In today’s language he might say, “If God hadn’t been watching over us, seriously, IF GOD HADN’T BEEN WATCHING US, we would have been toast!” He goes on to list the calamities that would have befallen the nation of Israel without God’s divine protection and care. I can just hear him letting out a big “whew” of relief that he and his brothers and sisters narrowly missed disaster.
Has anything like that ever happened to you? Have you barely averted danger and realized that, if only by God’s intervention, you would have been seriously injured or even killed?
Several years ago, I was driving along a street in my hometown of Speedway, Indiana. There is a railroad track that crosses that street, but it was hardly ever used by trains. It had been there for my whole life and I never had seen a train cross. There were no flashers or stop arms, just the crossed sign signifying a train track. The street was a main thoroughfare and always very busy.
On this day, my mind was somewhere else. As I approached the tracks, the last thing on my mind was the thought of stopping for a train. So, over the track I went. Midway over, I heard the sound of the engineer frantically blowing his whistle! I flew across the track just in time, because I looked in my rear view mirror to see the train completely through the intersection. How I made it without injury or death was God’s doing.
This psalm reminds me of Amy Grant’s song, “Angels Watching Over Me.” If you are familiar with the lyrics, she sings about the many times we barely squeak through danger by God’s miraculous touch. Most of the time, we never know how close we have come. Verse 8 says, “Our help is in the name of the Lord.”
Prayer for the day: Lord, you are with us day and night, guarding us from danger. Thank you so much for your loving protection! Amen
We encourage you to include a time of prayer with this reading. If you need a place to get started, consider the suggestions on the How to Pray page.