Spiritually dialing 911 - Greg Laurie - http://www.wnd.com/2014/07/spiritually-dialing-911/
Pastor Greg Laurie explains Psalm with 'promises of protection and provision'
Let's say it was late at night and you heard a noise downstairs. You were frightened. What would you do? Most of us would pick up the phone and dial three numbers: 9-1-1.
In a similar sense, when we are in spiritual trouble and there are things that frighten us, there is another 9-1-1 that we can turn to: Psalm 91:1. This verse says, "He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty."
Not only does the first verse of this psalm bring comfort, but the entire psalm contains God's promises of protection and provision for us.
Without question, Psalm 91 is a real gold mine of the Psalms. In fact, next to Psalm 23, this particular psalm has probably brought encouragement and comfort to more people around the world and throughout the centuries than any other.
But it is worth noting that the blessings that are promised in Psalm 91 are not for just anyone. They are specifically given to believers - and not to just believers in general, but to believers who specifically meet the requirements that are found in it. Psalm 91 is full of conditional promises. God promises to do certain things for us, hinging on our doing certain things that are required of us in this psalm.
For example, let's that say that you want to receive a loan. You must go down to your bank and apply. You must speak with a loan officer and fill out and sign many forms. You don't just go down to your bank and say, I want $50,000 and then just walk out the door. That is not receiving a loan; that is a holdup. If you want to receive a loan, then there are requirements you must meet before you receive that loan.
In the same way, in Psalm 91 God is saying there are many things he wants to do for us, but we must meet the requirements. We find them in verse 1: "He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty" (NKJV). The word dwells could be translated, "in quiet and resting, enduring and remaining with consistency." It is very similar to the New Testament word abide, which means "to stay in a given place, to maintain unbroken fellowship and communion with another." So God is essentially saying, "If you want to experience the promises of Psalm 91, the promises of my protection, provision and blessing, then you must dwell in the secret place of the Most High. You must remain in constant fellowship with me."
There is a difference between relationship and fellowship. If you are married, then you have a relationship with your husband or wife. You can even boast, "We have been married for 35 years." That is good. But do you have fellowship? In other words, do you communicate? Do you talk with one another? Do you know what your spouse's hopes, dreams and aspirations are? Does your husband or wife know the same about you? There is a place for fellowship and relationship.
We have a relationship with God when we have put our faith in Jesus Christ and have turned from our sin. But are we living in constant communion and fellowship with God? That is so important, yet many people are not doing this. They are not consistently dwelling with God. It is like checking in on Sundays for two hours and then saying, "I'll see you next week."
God is interested in a relationship with us that spans the entire week. He is interested in what goes on where we work. He is interested in what goes on where we play. He is interested in what goes on in our thoughts. He is interested in what goes on with our lives. He wants us to "[dwell] in the secret place of the Most High."
When you were a kid, did you ever have a hiding place, someplace you would run to when you were afraid or wanted to be alone? God wants to be your hiding place. The good news is that you can retreat to this hiding place wherever you are. When you are tied up in bumper-to-bumper traffic, you can go into the secret place of the Most High and abide under the shadow of the Almighty. When you are having a conflict at work and don't know what to say or how to deal with it, you can immediately retreat into the secret place of the Most High as you live in fellowship and communion with God.
It is not only dwelling there, but it is also living under the shadow of the Almighty. Have you ever tried to walk in someone's shadow? It can be done, but you have to stay really close. That is exactly the picture in Psalm 91:1. God wants to be our hiding place and to be so close to him that we actually are in his very shadow.
If we do that, then we have this promise in verse 2: "I will say of the Lord, 'He is my refuge and my fortress; My God, in Him I will trust.'" God is my protection, and this gives me courage to face life.
It took incredible courage and boldness for the great prophet Elijah to storm into the court of Ahab, the most wicked king that Israel had ever known, and announce, "As the Lord God of Israel lives, before whom I stand, there shall not be dew nor rain these years, except at my word" (1 Kings 17:1). Then he did an about-face and walked out.
Where did he get the courage to pull off something like that? With one snap of his fingers, Ahab could have put Elijah to death. We find the answer in Elijah's statement: "As the Lord God of Israel lives, before whom I stand ..." (emphasis mine). Although Elijah stood in the court of a powerful monarch, he recognized at the same time that he was dwelling in the secret place of the Most High.
If you kneel before God, you can stand before any man. Are you walking in this fellowship with him?
Are you facing an emergency today? Dial 9-1-1 - Psalm 91:1, that is. Periodically ask yourself, Am I meeting the criteria of this great psalm? If you are, then you have God's word that these promises will be activated in your life.
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