Encouragement from Psalm 121

Guest preacher John Tebay began by saying that he and Grace memorized Psalm 121 during the pandemic year 2020. It was clear that he has also reflected deeply on the psalm. Let’s pray for one another, that we would follow the Tebays’ example and turn to God’s word, first and foremost, to help us navigate trying times, not pundits or social media influencers.

Pastor John shared that he had to wrestle with the psalmist’s statement that God protects you from all evil. He asked the honest question, “What about Stephen or Job or John the Baptist? Did God protect them from all evil?” John’s first conclusion was that God’s priority is the soul, not the body. Lord, as I think about my own life and the lives of people around me, make my priority the soul, not physical well-being.

John’s second conclusion was that God’s commitment is your salvation. He promises to keep your soul. As His children, we listen and follow and obey, but He does the work of salvation: forgiving our sins, being with us always, transforming us into the likeness of Christ, strengthening our faith through trials, and preparing for us new bodies fit for heaven. Spend time in God’s presence, simply resting in the promise that our souls are kept by His power, not by our own strivings.

Satan likes to lie to us about God, whispering, “God isn’t ‘keeping you from all evil’! You can’t trust Him.” Ask God to protect you – and all of us – from Satan’s lies. Ask the Holy Spirit to help you recognize the enemy’s lie, even as he speaks, and shut your ears and heart to it.

Calvary Family

Ask the Lord to heal those in our church body who have been infected with COVID-19 and to protect those who haven’t.

I know someone who is really struggling right now, and you may know someone like that too. She was facing some serious issues in life before the pandemic, and the disruptions of normal life in the last ten months seem to have pushed her into a dark funk. Instead of reaching out, she is pulling back. Pray for these sufferers, asking the Lord to shine His warm, healing, comforting light into their dark places.

In Christ,
Carol Gilbert
Calvary Community Church of Brea

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