Introduction:
Last Sunday when Bruce introduced us Barbara and I felt like he just made us look too good. So I wanted to set the record straight. When I was 16 year-old I did preach once a month at the Nashville Convalescent Center and Barbara did go with me on occasion. But it wasn't our first date. Our first date is a very interesting story.
Situation:
When I met Barbara, we were on a school trip to Gatlinburg and I was smitten. But there were problems.
1st Problem: I had been dating this other girl and for five months.
Solution: When we got back to Nashville I broke up her.
2nd problem: I had no money to take Barbara on a date, not to mention, I had not asked her yet, so she had not said yes.
Solution: It was Friday night and Barbara and I both were students at McGavock High School and everyone had been given a free ticket to go see the Nashville Stars (Hockey team). Very nice.
3rd Problem: I had only one ticket.
Solution: I called Barbara and asked her if she had a ticket and asked if she would go with me.
4th Problem: Barbara was 15 and her parents said she couldn’t date until she was 16.
Solution: She used some kind of Jedi mind trick on her parents to convince them to let her go out with me. She begged.
Barbara and I want you to know that we are normal people with normal problems. No halos.
I also want you to know that as you all are considering adding me as a full time staff member is not something I take lightly.
For one thing, it's a hard thing to let go of the ministry I have at Lifeway Christian Resources. In fact, after meeting with the Personnel Committee several times they said, "We want to present your name to the church." We had to decide.
As we are making decisions it was in the midst of a very full schedule - we stayed up late discussing it. This was a tense time for us. Sense of taking a risk when there's a lot of turbulence in the world
Early Tuesday morning, I was putting my lunch and a couple of cans of diet Pepsi in a reused Wal-Mart bag and Barbara came around the table and showed me this Psalm. She had actually been looking for a Psalm to encourage someone in her Sunday morning bible study class but it ministered to her.
Read Psalm 91
This is a powerful passage of scriptures on many levels.
It's great encouragement – it was to Barbara, it was to me. And as I posted notice on my facebook page that I was preparing a sermon on Psalm 91 and asked you all to pray for me, I found that many of you regularly find refuge in Psalm 91.
One person wrote on my Facebook Wall:
“Hi Craig, I’m currently in the Bible study at a friend's home “Discerning the Voice of God.” This friend shared with us last week how 3 different people told her to pray Psalm 91 over her son when he deployed to Iraq earlier this summer. She didn't think anything else about it. She purchased a Nicole C Mullen CD and fell in love with one of the songs and sang it over and over. Melody was "singing" Psalm 91 without realizing it. We listened to the CD last night and followed along in our Bibles before diving into the Bible study.”
I had no idea that so many used Psalm 91 in this way.
At a deeper level - I took this Psalm and used it for my quiet time that morning at work. Can I just share a few insights I found in this very deep passage of scripture?
First, I want you to notice that the writer uses four different names for God
He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the LORD, "He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust." Psalm 91:1-2
Do you know God’s name?
Mary Kassian has a new study called “Knowing God by Name.” It's an excellent study dealing with the names of God. She says,“The Bible reveals that the Lord God has more than 100 names. Each name means something, each reveals an important aspect of His nature or points to one of the ways in which he relates to us. We don't really know God until we know Him by name."
Question: What names do you use for God?
(Note: At this point I invited persons to share the names they generally use for God when they address Him. Names like Father, Lord, Master, Jesus, Almighty, Savior, and Imanuel were mentioned outloud.)
Let's take a look at the four names the Psalmist uses for God ...
Most High Psalm 91:1 Hebrew - Elyon
Strongest of the Strong - Superlative God - surpassing all others – Supreme. Above all other powers and authority.
Would you repeat this after me ... “I live under the protection of the Most High God.”
Almighty Psalm 91:1 Hebrew – Shaddai or Shadday
The name shadday means “All Powerful” Omnipotent
The promise inherent in the name Shadday is that the Almighty can do everything He has promised. No man or other power can thwart His ways. He is an awesome God. (HToKBW)
Would you repeat this after me ... “I dwell in the shadow of Almighty God”
LORD Psalm 91:2 Hebrew – Yahweh or Jehovah
His name means, “I am who I am” or “I will be who I will be.” The significance of these translations show that God is the One who is there for His people.
In New Testament the Lord Himself appeared among His people as Emmanuel, “God with us.” Jesus was bold enough to apply the Greek equivalent to the Hebrew term, YHWH, Lord, to Himself. (Source - Holman Treasury of Key Bible Words: 200 Greek and 200 Hebrew Words Defined and Explained.)
Would you repeat this after me ... “The Lord is my refuge and my fortress.”
God Psalm 91:2 Hebrew – Elohim
ʾElohim is “God,” the Maker of the universe and the Supreme Creator of all life. It emphasizes God’s power and strength which is evident in creating, from nothing, the heavens, the earth and all that is in them.
Would you repeat this after me ... “I trust in the God who created all things.”
It’s so important for you to learn about the names of God, and the character of God.
In our study of Disciple's Prayer Life: Walking in Fellowship with God on Wednesday nights we spent an entire week dealing with who God is, how to use His names in prayer and another entire week of understanding our unique prayer identity with Him.We put them together by writing our own personalized Psalm 23.
“The Lord is my Shepherd” gives us great insight into King David’s identity before God
Can I read some of them to you?
(At this point I read some personalized Psalm 91s that had been written in our class. This is an excellent excercise. We had one gentleman who is a airline pilot write his Psalm 91 beginning with "The Lord is My Pilot.")
Psalm 91 reminds us about who God is and also reminds us what he provides for us ….
What does God provide?
He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the LORD, "He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust." Psalm 91:1-2
• Shelter – secret place
• Protection
• Covering
What does else does God provide?
• Refuge – protection from rain, storm, or danger
• Shadow – protection - umbrella
• Shield -
Refuge / Protection from what
Psalm 91:3-6
He Himself will deliver you from the hunter’s net,
the hunter’s net – man made danger
from the destructive plague.
the deadly pestilence - disease
He will cover you with His feathers; you will take refuge under His wings. His faithfulness will be a protective shield.
You will not fear the terror of the night, the arrow that flies by day,
the terror of the night – night demons – boogey man
the plague that stalks in darkness, or the pestilence that ravages at noon. (HCSB)
But the Psalmist’s mind was not obsessed with these things
Because when you realize who God is, when you know Him by name, when you know the kind of protection he provides for you as a child of God living in his household, you can get your focus off of yourself, you can get your focus off of the economy and your fears, and you can get your focus on others …
For God has not given us a spirit of fearfulness, but one of power, love, and sound judgment. 2 Timothy 1:7 (HCSB)
How do I get it?
• call Him by name
• move back in
• abide in Him
During this time of great turbulence in our economic mess and in our Political mess the world is going to be looking to you and to me and they are going to be asking
Do they really believe in God?
Do they believe what they say they believe?
Beginning next week we are going to be in a 6 week study of John 3:16
Max Lucado says, “If you know nothing of the Bible, start here. If you know everything in the Bible, return here. The heart of the human problem is the heart of the human, and God’s treatment is prescribed in John 3:16: God loves. God gave. We believe. We live.”
Commit to the next 6 weeks to get back to the basics in your faith
Move back in with God – you still have the keys
Repent for choosing to live outside of his protection