Surrounded

As the mountains surround Jerusalem, So the Lord surrounds His people From this time forth and forever

(Psalm 125:2 NKJV)

The title of our blog today is not a word we hear often, and could elicit different emotions.  For some, it gives a sense of warmth as one imagines being in the middle of loved ones, while for others, it gives a sense of flight coming from a fear of being marooned without a place of refuge. Either of these emotions are valid depending on one’s experiences and expectations of what could be surrounding them.  It is however my hope that we can look at the word positively and feel the warmth of embrace from a loving Father.

Our reference verse calls our minds and hearts to recognize that it is God who is encamping around us. The chapter addresses those who have put their trust in God and the psalmist then compares these people to Mount Zion as individuals who cannot be moved by situations of life but are firmly grounded.  He continues to give us the picture of the landscape and he says that the city of Jerusalem is surrounded by mountains, then he compares the city with the people of God while he likens the mountains to the Lord who surrounds His people.  That my brethren gives a sense of warmth and hope to us, despite whatever else could be happening around us.  We are living in a time when we are pulled in all directions and it is important for each one of us to find a place of refuge, a place of tranquility from where we can draw our strength.  The picture of being surrounded by the Lord as our reference verse brings us, becomes our place of rest from the hassles of life.

This is not the only time in the bible that we have the picture of being surrounded for protection by God.  We read that Elisha was surrounded, this time by the enemies and to his servant it looked like there was no way out (2 Kings 6:17-20).  While this would cause panic for Elisha, he was blessed to know that he was not alone but had an army of God with him.  We see Elisha praying that his servant would have his eyes opened to realize that they were still safe.  We also know of David being surrounded by Saul and his armies, with the hope of catching him and killing him (David).  Despite Saul having his armies, the tables turned and David found where Saul was laying down. David did Saul no harm but to show that he would have killed him, he took Saul’s water jug and spear (1 Kings 26).  These two stories assure us that it does not matter who has physically threatened us, we are closely surrounded by God’s hand of protection and at the end, we always overcome.

Beloved, while we might be more sensitive to the threats which we see around us, it is comforting to know that we have a greater army with us.  Jesus did tell His disciples that though they face challenges in life, they should step forward with the knowing that greater is He who is in them that he who is in the world (1 John 4:4).  Jesus Himself was at one time teaching in a Jerusalem synagogue and the people did not like what He was saying.  In their anger, they wanted to throw Him down a cliff but this did not happen as Jesus walked through their midst (John 4:30).  This is a beautiful picture to hold in our hearts, those who wanted to do Jesus harm were so many, a crowd we read, yet our Lord walked right in their midst as if they were not there.  That brethren is the assurance of our security as people whom God surrounds.  No matter what is intimidating your life or family, we can lean into God’s promise to protect us and give us victory.   May this be our experience in Christ Jesus.

Thoughts:

How have you experienced God’s protection?

Are there areas of your life that need His protection?

How do you lean in to God’s protective covering?