Thought for Today
Deuteronomy 12:10 When you cross over the Jordan and live in the land that the LORD your God is allotting to you, and when he gives you rest from your enemies all around so that you live in safety,
Psalm 4:7 You have put gladness in my heart more than when their grain and wine abound. 8 I will both lie down and sleep in peace; for you alone, O LORD, make me lie down in safety.
Acts 27:23 For last night there stood by me an angel of the God to whom I belong and whom I worship, 24 and he said, 'Do not be afraid, Paul; you must stand before the emperor; and indeed, God has granted safety to all those who are sailing with you.'
Where do you find safety in your life? In what . . . or whom do you put your trust, your guarantee of safety? I thought about this yesterday when a service technician came to our home to repair a portion of our security alarm system. Our home, like our last home in Houston, has several different layers of security. Our external doors are all equipped with deadbolt locks. We have a monitored alarm system including motion sensors and other devices. For fire protection we have smoke alarms, some of which are also CO monitors. Those devices all provide a certain amount of safety for our lives.
Most modern automobiles have multiple layers of security, interlocking switches and systems to keep us safe on the highways. Most have anti-skid brakes, security alarms and other items to keep our automobiles safe.
Are you like the young marine in Pacific who, when discussing his faith or lack thereof is asked, “What do you believe in?” responded, “I believe in ammunition!” Do you keep a firearm readily available as part of your security ‘system?’ Do you put your trust in firepower?
Chances are that if you are reading this, you are a person of faith. Hopefully, as such, you are more like the psalmist, “121:1 I lift up my eyes to the hills-- from where will my help come? 2 My help comes from the LORD, who made heaven and earth.”
The American psychologist Abraham Maslow proposed a hierarchy of needs as “a conceptualisation of the needs (or goals) that motivate human behaviour.” (en.wikipedia.org) The hierarchy is usually presented as a triangle. The base level includes our physical needs for survival, food, shelter, etc. The next ascending level represents our needs for security. Throughout humanity’s existence, all societies have striven to provide security. Security needs are the reason we have policing bodies, armies and other defensive mechanisms. In America, even our roads, highways and rail systems can be considered a part of our safety and security needs while they also help ensure our physical needs are met.
As Christians, as people of faith, we are called to look beyond Maslow’s simplistic representation of human needs. We are called to understand life itself in relationship to our understanding of our Creator God. We know the ultimate truth of the psalmist’s words, “My help comes from the LORD, who made heaven and earth.” Like the psalmist, we know the truth of the 23rd Psalm, maybe especially “3 he restores my soul. He leads me in right paths for his name's sake.”
I must admit that I slept more soundly last night knowing that our alarm system was armed and functioning properly. But I sleep soundly most nights because I know the truth of Paul’s words to the Ephesians, “2:8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God—”
One of the first songs I learned as a young child is still one of my favorite hymns, Jesus Loves Me. There is truth, there is security and safety in that assurance that “Jesus loves me, this I know, for the Bible tells me so.”
We are in Advent. What greater assurance of our spiritual safety and security could we hope for than God’s sending God’s Son to show us the way? “John 3:16 For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.”
Stay safe, rest securely in God’s love, trust God,
Pastor Ray