Under and Over

Keep me as the apple of Your eye; hide me under the shadow of Your wings...How precious is Your lovingkindness, O God! Therefore the children of men put their trust under the shadow of Your wings. (Psalm 17:8, Psalm 36:7)

Wings are mentioned several times in the Bible. I asked God one morning that I might be kept under His wings of protection so I might be able to soar on eagles' wings. And it got me to thinking....

As children when we were frightened we might run to the arms of our parents, as a mother chick stretches our her wings to protect her brood. Those arms and those wings were open to receive, hold, comfort and protect. Sometimes, unfortunately arms might be crossed or stretched out in a way to show distance is to be kept.

But our Lord's arms are ever outstretched to receive and protect. Distance between ourselves and Him is not something He wishes to have. He is the Father we can run to when things go wrong, when we fear and need peace in our hearts, when we hurt and need comfort. I'm so thankful we don't need to go anywhere else. We just call on Jesus. There is no mediator apart from Jesus, no idol, no patron saint, no clergyman can do what our Father in Heaven can do. Psalm 57:1 - Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful to me! For my soul trusts in You; and in the shadow of Your wings I will make my refuge, until these calamities have passed by.

How do we get that protection? Our protection comes by accepting Jesus as Lord and Savior. It gives us assurance of eternal life. Even if we are struck by tragedy or death, we are under His wings of protection. Our death does not mean the end. There is more eternally. There is life after death, a life in the Kingdom of God. What more do we need to know than that? 1John 5:11 - And this is the testimony: that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son.

When you accept Jesus, His truth, this truth I've mentioned about eternal life, will be known and it is the protection you need. Psalm 63:7 - Because You have been my help, therefore in the shadow of Your wings I will rejoice. Psalm 91:4 - He shall cover you with His feathers, and under His wings you shall take refuge; His truth shall be your shield and buckler.

Don't turn away from Him. Embrace the truth and the Truth of Jesus. There is a scripture that is God's plea to those who ignore the call of His Son. It's His heart's cry to those who reject Him, who scorn Him, who turn away from those who want you to know Him. Luke 13:34 - O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, but you were not willing!

But wait! There's more. We are told that if we have this relationship with the Lord, if we do not reject His Word, we listen to Him and obey and commit our lives to Him...and this is still possible...like I said before, if things are falling apart around us, inwardly we need not lose heart because we are being renewed day by day (2Corinthians 4:16). We are under the wings of our Heavenly Father and that can only mean eternal protection. With that knowledge there is nothing we can't conquer in this life. Our strength comes from the Lord and even in death we will be victorious. We will soar on eagles' wings.

Isaiah 40:31 - ... those who wait on the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall soar on wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.