Defense

“The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the defense of my life; whom shall I dread? Psalm 27:1

Defense – “We’re off to see the Wizard, the wonderful Wizard of Oz.”  The Hebrew word ma ‘oz means, “a place of refuge”.  And just like Dorothy’s hope, ma ‘oz is the place to be if you need protection and strength.

But there is something about this word that doesn’t fit the Yellow Brick Road.  Ma ‘oz has the sense of immediacy.  It is “help in a hurry”.  The Bible uses this word for political alliances, physical fortresses and military strength.  The Bible also points out that none of these is the real ma ‘oz.  There is only one place of real refuge and protection and that is the Lord.

Take a moment and draw a fortress on a piece of paper.  Then draw a road to the fortress.  What perspective did you use?  Did you draw the picture from the inside or the outside?  David has an inside perspective.  David draws the picture looking out.  He wants us to see that we are on the inside of God’s protection, looking out from the high towers and guard posts.  We see the road going away from the fortress, not toward it.

If you drew your picture from outside, turn the paper over, hold it up to the light (you see how important that word is?) and look from inside.  You and God are in the fortress, protected, safe.  You have already arrived and been admitted.  Why not live today from that perspective?  It certainly changes the view.

Today’s To Do:  I will change my perspective in at least one area of my life.  I will live looking out from the fortress of God’s love.

(verse continued tomorrow)