Psalm 91 Becomes So Real

In these days of bad news and worse news we find ourselves afraid to step out of our doors in fear that some invisible enemy named Coronavirus will land on our head and end our days. Interestingly, corona in Spanish (and Italian) translates “crown”. It can’t be missed that it wants to rule the land. If you have forgotten how bad it is, just turn on your computer or tv and at your fingertips will be all the forboding numbers and predictions. I have to daily pray and remind myself that God is my fortress and strong tower. I know His Word is true when He promises to cover me with His wings; His faithfulness being my shield.

As a matter of faith building in this time, I have prayed daily Psalm 91. You may be familiar with it. It is 16 powerful verses reminding us that God is our protector from terrors at night, arrows that fly by day, and plagues that stalk. I have read it in half a dozen translations and love them all. The promises are strong and reliable in every choice of wording. I even put it on my refrigerator. It doesn’t work as a snack deterrent unfortunately; but it does remind without even rereading it that God’s Word is sure and He is with me and remains my protector.

Now, there is a verse in there that has always made me raise my eyebrows a bit. “Does this really apply to me? Perhaps this is figuratively speaking. Right?” Verse 13 declares that:

“You will tread on the lion and the cobra; you will trample the great lion and the serpent.”

Psalm 91:13

Psalm 91 is a psalm of David. I know David fought a few lions. That’s the confidence he carried into battle with Goliath. When King Saul asked David why he thought he could defeat Goliath, David responded, “Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear; this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, because he has defied the armies of the Living God.” 1 Samuel 17:36. Yep, David could “trample the great lion and the serpent.”

But me? Well, first of all, besides the Houston Zoo and Barnum and Bailey Circus, lions are foreign to me. Behind glass or steel bars is as close to lions as I have ever been. Trample them? I don’t think so.

I can’t say the same for serpents. I live in southeast Texas and snakes abound. I see at least one every summer and sometimes 4 or 5. The most common poisonous serpents here are the copperhead and the water moccasin. We have others and some nonpoisonous as well, but this isn’t a discussion of snakes. Rather, it is how He makes us trample them.

As a Easter gift from a friend, I received a fence post sign that read “He is Risen”. It is beautiful and I love it. It was just the truth that I wanted displayed in front of my home. Thanks Jamie. As my husband and I were contemplating how to make it stay put, I suggested putting a hollowed out, half of a tree stump in front of it. We’ve had that half a tree stump in a flower bed for ages. I picked up the small (approx. 10 inches across) stump and moved it to the front of the sign. I then shoved it with my sandaled foot closer to the sign to hold it tight.

Gary and I decided that wouldn’t work because the stump would cover the “n” in risen. No, I would pick it up and move it again back to the side where it had been.

Gary immediately spoke, “No, let me have it. Let’s put the stump on the other side of the porch. He then picked it up and carried it away. While I am still staring at the sign, I hear him holler and throw the stump down.

I asked him what happened. Hornet’s nest? Giant hairy spider? Fire ants? Nope. On top of that stump that had been moved now three times was a copperhead that was now slithering off after all the excitement. Don’t miss this. I had picked up and carried a copperhead not once, not twice, but three times before handing it off to Gary! He carried it 3 or 4 steps before seeing the danger and doing the only logical thing. I ran for the shovel and now Mr. Copperhead is fertilizer on the vacant lot next to us.

We stood there in utter amazement and without a word. Together we had lived a miracle. Copperheads are not carried around like kittens. They are not known to be aggressive, but are most dangerous when they are disturbed or threatened. I never saw it while I held it close to my chest and leaned over it with my face. Even Gary, didn’t notice it until it was next to his head. I don’t know if God caused it to sleep, closed its mouth, or made it friendly, but it didn’t strike until it was on the ground out of harm’s way. And then it faced us with mouth wide open ready to bite.

With eyes bulging and jaws dangling while we considered what just happened, Gary’s phone rang and my normally strong and solid husband just about jumped out of his work uniform. Funny….after the severe case of “the willies” had subsided.

God had protected our lives and I almost never knew. It makes me wonder how many times He has shielded me from what the devil would have used to destroy me. And you too. Car crashes that were avoided and you don’t even know how. Someone has suggested that in life we have all walked or drove past a murderer or other dangerous person and never knew it. God protects us with little or no fanfare. Only heaven will tell the stories.

The next morning as I was going through Psalm 91 again, reciting every word as a petition and promise, I read verse 13. When I began the verse 14, it was as if the Holy Spirit cleared His throat, “Ahem”. I stopped and looked back. When I reread it I knew what the Lord was saying to me.

The same God that could deliver David from a lion, a bear, a serpent and a 9 foot giant, is the same God that can and does deliver me. It wasn’t David, it was God. David, on his own, would have been a lion’s lunch. Goliath laughed at David because he couldn’t see the invisible God that stood between him and the young boy warrior. The battles are not even. Nothing or no one is a match for God and you. He wins even when we are unaware of the danger.

Psalm 91 still applies. He is our refuge. He loves us enough to send His angels to guard our steps. He promises there is rest in the mere shadow of the Almighty. Awwww, rest. Don’t we need it? I trust the Lord when He says that “no disaster will come near your tent.”

I know. I know. What about the Christians that are suffering with covid-19 right now? I have prayed for several missionaries that I know have suffered with the virus. Really suffered. How does Psalm 91 apply to them? It is just as true. As the chapter draws to the end, the Lord says about the ones who love Him, “He will call on me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him.” Did you notice “in trouble”? Or the fact that He promises to deliver us, meaning we will at times need deliverance?

There are times when this fallen world deals trouble. God’s 91 says to call on Him. He promises in just verse 15 to answer you, be with you in trouble, deliver you and honor you. One of the missionaries that has been hospitalized for four weeks is now slowly coming off the ventilator. He told his wife today with labored talk that the presence of the Lord had been so strong and sweet that he knew he was exactly where he was supposed to be. How wonderful God’s presence must be that a person would accept this battle just to soak in the glory of Him. Another 96 year old women who caught the virus in the nursing home in Washington, early in this pandemic, told this story: During her sickest night when she wasn’t sure that she would survive, she would come to and feel the Lord’s presence and even his hand stroking her arm in comfort. She said it was the most amazing experience in her 96 years of life.

Why didn’t Jesus instantly heal her or protect from getting sick? I don’t know. But His presence was constant and I could tell from her smile and tears that they shared something amazing. It’s just like my miraculous protection from the snake bite. No doubt that God performed that work. On the other hand, Paul survived a shipwreck, washed up on the isle of Malta, only to be bitten by a poisonous snake….all while working for the Lord. Where was Psalm 91? Why didn’t God protect him? Well, He did. Paul called upon the Lord and trusted His God. God rescued him from the 14 day storm, the soldiers threat to kill him and all the prisoners on board, the ship breaking to pieces, floating ashore, and then the snake bite. You see God was clearly His strong tower.

So I totally rest in the promise of his protection. His Word is true. I pray Psalms 91 with every belief that God meant every word. I love the Lord. How can I help it? He is my refuge. I am never alone. I do not fear the coronavirus. God is always with me and no virus will “crown” my life. That belongs to Him.