December 31 – The LORD Himself Watches Over You
By Audrey Bauman
Psalm 121 NLT
A song for pilgrims ascending to Jerusalem.
1 I look up to the mountains—
does my help come from there?
2 My help comes from the Lord,
who made heaven and earth!
3 He will not let you stumble;
the one who watches over you will not slumber.
4 Indeed, he who watches over Israel
never slumbers or sleeps.
5 The Lord himself watches over you!
The Lord stands beside you as your protective shade.
6 The sun will not harm you by day,
nor the moon at night.
7 The Lord keeps you from all harm
and watches over your life.
8 The Lord keeps watch over you as you come and go,
both now and forever.
Our world is in such turmoil today. There seem to be wars and natural disasters happening everywhere. How do we deal with all the things that make us so worried?
You' ll notice that the psalm starts by stating the reason for the psalm - "a song for pilgrims ascending to Jerusalem". The pilgrimage to Jerusalem was a difficult journey; it was tiring and injuries were possible. They certainly didn't have all the cars and vehicles we have today. They would sing that psalm to reassure themselves that God was watching over them. And God was doing exactly that! We can pray for all the burdensome events in our world, knowing that God will take care of them.
You can also use that psalm for your own difficult times. Sometimes when we find ourselves feeling tense and anxious, we need to stop and remind ourselves of God's care and love for us.
Maybe you are experiencing a difficult situation at work, and you’re not sure how you should react. You wish there was someone you could talk with about the situation. Maybe you’re a young mom with little ones, and your husband’s work demands way too much of his time. You wish your mom lived in the same city so you had someone you could run to who would reassure you that you were doing a great job with the new baby. Perhaps your last child just moved out, and now you and your wife/husband are on your own for the first time in years. You suddenly realize that you’ve been so busy with work and family, that you don’t know how to spend evening after evening alone with each other. Ah, that empty nest.
This psalm reassures us that we are actually never alone.
“The one who watches over you will not slumber.” …
“The Lord keeps watch over you as you come and go,
both now and forever.”
Isn’t that incredible! God is watching over you every moment of the day and night. You are not alone! No matter what situation you are going through – he knows all about it. Read the psalm again, and as you read - look for the words and phrases that reassure you that God is concerned about you. He is your protection. He is more than able to help you in any situation.
My help comes from the Lord,
who made heaven and earth!
If you are struggling with feeling alone and anxious for any reason, pray this psalm.
Our song for today is God Will Take of You sung by Lisa and Neil Rondina