Dear Missionary Lady,
Greetings in the name of our Faithful Shelter. If we try, I think that every day we could find stories in the news about shelters that were not faithful: buildings collapsing or burning down or being washed away. Those aren’t very reliable shelters.
But this is God. “He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler” (Psalm 91:4).
This verse includes two very different pictures of shelters. The first is that of a mother bird, probably a chicken, based on similar descriptions in other verses. The second is of a shield.
Both are thorough or broad. When a chick is hiding under its mother’s wings, covered by them, as this verse describes, that tiny chick is invisible under the much larger wings of the mother. The shield and buckler are both large shields, meant to protect the entire person.
Both are also surrounding. The chick is tucked between the warm body and the soft, covering feathers. The buckler, in particular, is a rounded shield that surrounds the soldier.
One is soft and gentle, while the other is tough and fierce. It is a blessing that God is both. In one we see His love and tenderness, and in the other we see that He has the raw power and impermeability to withstand any attack.
God’s “truth” that shields us is probably the idea of truthfulness or faithfulness, the fact that he is always right and sure. It comes from a word that refers to the stability of a building, which circles back to my opening paragraph. When God shelters us, He does it in a way that no earthly shelter can. He is a shelter that can be relied on. Soft, yet strong, and always sure.
May God shelter your bodies, minds, spirits, families, and ministries. Rest in Him.
Love in Christ,
Peggy Holt
member at Open Door Baptist Church in Lebanon, PA
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