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Psalm 36:7

NASB	NLT	VOICE
7 How precious is Your mercy, God! And the sons of mankind take refuge in the shadow of Your wings.	7 How precious is your unfailing love, O God! All humanity finds shelter in the shadow of your wings.	7 Your strong love, O True God, is precious. All people run for shelter under the shadow of Your wings.

God’s Closer Than We Realize

God’s love for us is immeasurable. This love is the foundation of our relationship with God, showing how committed He is to us and graceful He is. God is a place of safety and protection, offered to all people. God is not just for Americans or for white people, but for all people. God goes beyond the ethnic and cultural separators that often separate us, to bring together in unity under His command. God’s protection is akin to a bird sheltering their young. It shows intimacy, care, and security – showing that His protection is gentle and powerful, which is great for the oppressed, traumatized, and those in real danger. The shadow of his wings shows how close God is to us.

REFLECTION CHECKPOINT: I’ve heard this quoted before: “God doesn’t have to yell for us to get our attention, because He’s close.” How do you feel about this? How have you experienced God’s closeness?

Guidance in the Heat of the Moment

Some interpretations state that Psalm 36 is at a time when King David was running away from Saul or Absalom. King Saul was jealous of David, and how the crowd responded to Him. Saul knew that he was the people’s king, but David was the one anointed by God to be the next king of Israel after Samuel. Saul tried to get rid of David multiple times, causing David to run and flee for his life. Absalom was one of David’s sons, who fled from David after he avenged his sister’s death by killing her rapist. (Heavy stuff, I know.) David allowed him back, and they after a 5-year absence. After Absalom came back, he started undermining David’s authority – eventually, declaring himself as King. This caused David to flee Jerusalem with His followers.

In both circumstances, since we don’t know for sure when David wrote Psalm 36, we see the commonality of him fleeing to a place of protection – which was found through God. Like David, we are called to seek His protection and guidance in times of trouble. We may feel like our troubles are so minor that, “Why would I bother God with them?” Or they can feel so massive that, “I don’t even know how to tell God,” or “I’m so overwhelmed. I didn’t even think about telling God.” We try to handle things ourselves, with our scattered mind, and sometimes – make things worse. David could handle things himself – going after Saul and killing Him before Saul could get him and fighting Absalom from taking his throne – but he didn’t. He went away. He went to a place of safety and protection, both physically and spiritually. He stopped and asked God for his guidance.

Asking God for guidance in your next steps doesn’t mean that you’re weak or faithless, it means that you trust His judgment over anything you can do yourself. It means that you’re willing to let the one that created you and imbued you with the different skills and talents march forward on the path He has for you. It means not listening to those around you that encourage you to get revenge, go do what you need to do, or anything like that. If we knew what we needed to do, we wouldn’t need to ask God, right? David could have went out and got revenge, but we don’t do that. We don’t need to match an eye for an eye, but we work towards proper boundary-setting and getting to a place of safety and justice.  

Now David – his results were mixed. With Absalom, David sent some of his commanders to deal with him. This unfortunately led to Absalom’s death. Saul’s reign ended with his death and the following reign of David. Sometimes, our battles can end with the death of something. It could be the end of a relationship, a friendship, a career, an addiction, or something more. It’s removing the things that prevent us from living the life that God has called us to live. It can be tough. It will be a time of mourning, but we’re not going to stay there. We will feel what we need to fill and then will move forward with God’s strength on to the next thing. The timing will adjust person to person, but God’s got us and the situation we’re wrestling

PRAY Action

Praise God for the ability to overcome our struggle through His strength. Thank him for the Holy Spirit that resides within us.

Read Psalm 46:1

Ask God for the protection needed in the battles that we face every day. No matter how intense they may feel, they are impacting us in ways we may not understand. Ask God for the shield and protection from those things that are hurting your soul.

You are able to overcome all things that you face through your relationship with God. They may feel massive right now but remember that – it’s right now. What happens today may not matter a day from now, a week, or even a year. We face what we must, deal with it, and march forward.

Next slice of manna: The Power of Love Over Hatred || Proverbs 10:12 || Manna for the Mind #312