the Lord is your keeper..

as i walk through the present season of my life I have come to know God as my Keeper. looking back on my yesterdays i can honestly say that somewhere along the path i ventured off. i thought i was following my Compass, but little did i know that i was not aligned. i got one degree off. as i kept going i got further and further off from True North. the veering was so subtle that i did not realize how off course i was until i finally looked up and found myself in the blackness of the wilderness.

"And I will punish her for the feast days of the Baals when she burned offerings to them and adorned herself with her ring and jewelry, and went after her lovers and forgot me, declares the LORD. Therefore, behold, I will allure her, and bring her into the wilderness, and speak tenderly to her. And there I will give her her vineyards and make the Valley of Achor (Valley of Trouble ) a door of hope. And there she shall answer as in the days of her youth, as at the time when she came out of the land of Egypt." -Hosea 2:13-15

my Beloved took me to the wilderness only to bring me back to Him, more steadfast, held more tightly. brutal lessons were learned. pain was for my gain. and now, i am changed. i have been made anew. i feel His hands so tightly around me. His grip holds firm. He has hemmed me in. He is my Keeper, keeping me close. when i make the slightest turn in the wrong direction He quickly comes to nudge me back in place. fear creeps in that i will somehow get off track again, but then i remember that the only safety is found in the hands of my Keeper, and no one can snatch me from His hands. He loves me too much to let me go.

"Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life." -Proverbs 4:23 here we find another translation to the ever so quoted, yet ever so important "guard your heart" line we get thrown at us..i find rest in knowing that the Lord is my Keeper..i can't guard my heart, i can't keep it the way it should be..but i know the One who can. when it is in His hands, it is safe, and i have freedom to live for Him, to love like Him.

Psalm 121:
I lift up my eyes to the hills.
From where does my help come?
My help comes from the Lord,
who made heaven and earth.

He will not let your foot be moved;
he who keeps you will not slumber.
Behold, he who keeps Israel
will neither slumber nor sleep.

The Lord is your keeper;
the Lord is your shade on your right hand.
The sun shall not strike you by day,
nor the moon by night.

The Lord will keep you from all evil;
he will keep your life.
The Lord will keep
your going out and your coming in
from this time forth and forevermore.


commentary on psalm 121:1-8:"The safety of the godly. - We must not rely upon men and means, instruments and second causes. Shall I depend upon the strength of the hills? upon princes and great men? No; my confidence is in God only. Or, we must lift up our eyes above the hills; we must look to God who makes all earthly things to us what they are. We must see all our help in God; from him we must expect it, in his own way and time. This psalm teaches us to comfort ourselves in the Lord, when difficulties and dangers are greatest. It is almighty wisdom that contrives, and almighty power that works the safety of those that put themselves under God's protection. He is a wakeful, watchful Keeper; he is never weary; he not only does not sleep, but he does not so much as slumber. Under this shade they may sit with delight and assurance. He is always near his people for their protection and refreshment. The right hand is the working hand; let them but turn to their duty, and they shall find God ready to give them success. He will take care that his people shall not fall. Thou shalt not be hurt, neither by the open assaults, nor by the secret attempts of thine enemies. The Lord shall prevent the evil thou fearest, and sanctify, remove, or lighten the evil thou feelest. He will preserve the soul, that it be not defiled by sin, and disturbed by affliction; he will preserve it from perishing eternally. He will keep thee in life and death; going out to thy labour in the morning of thy days, and coming home to thy rest when the evening of old age calls thee in. It is a protection for life. The Spirit, who is their Preserver and Comforter, shall abide with them for ever."