The Shadow Of The Almighty

1.3 My Shelter

“He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty (Psalm 91:1).

The word means, “secret place,” and it’s a place of privacy and protection. What do you think of when you think of a “shelter?” Maybe you had a secret place a child where you could get away from your parents, your brothers and sisters, and the older kids that wanted to beat you up? There are tornado shelters and bomb shelters. Historically, even the president gets away to a shelter of sorts, Camp David. There’s even the Cheyenne Mountain Complex in Colorado. Known as NORAD, its 2 blast doors weighing in at 25 tons each and it sits behind 2,500 feet of granite. All of this to shield our nation’s critical personnel in a time of nuclear war. It seems everyone has a place to get away. Where is your place of safety, your refuge? For the genuine believer, God is our shelter.

1.4 My Shadow

“He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty” (Psalm 91:1). If you start a new job, you will “shadow” someone all day long. You don’t have to be too close to see someone’s shadow. But you know you have to be really close to someone to stay in their shadow, right? How close are you to God? Do you shadow Him?

1.5 What Do You Fear?

Now, I have found that just about everyone is afraid of something.

Howard Hughes was so afraid of germs that he used four boxes of tissue paper every day, wiping off everything he touched.

Evil Knievel, the dare devil stuntman of my childhood was afraid of airplanes.

Nicole Kidman fears butterflies and Matthew McConaughey gets anxious around revolving doors.

Augustus Caesar was afraid to sit in the dark.

Some of you fear a virus while others of you fear an election. Maybe 2020 has highlighted one of your fears. Yes, just about everyone has a fear of something.

Did you hear about the hitch-hiker who was picked by the side of road. After a few miles, he turned to the driver and said, “Weren’t you afraid that I might be a serial killer?” That’s when the driver responded, “Not really because the odds of 2 serial killers in the same car is infinitesimally small.”

Yes, we all have fears. But listen again to the psalmist in verse 2: “I will say to the Lord, ‘My refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust’” (Psalm 91:2).

1.5 I Personally Trust God

It’s as if he says, “Let me offer you a word of personal testimony. God, my refuge and stronghold. He is the One in whom I ever trust.” This isn’t a one-time trust but it is a repeated trust. How does this trust thing work?

1.6 Flying a Plane

Certainly prayer, a back and forth with God as talk to Him about everything in life. Imagine if you and me are flying across the great state of Texas in a private plane and we are joined by an experienced pilot. You hear the pilot say to me, “Do you want to fly the plane?” Now the two of us are sitting side by side, and I say “Yes, I’d love to do that!” And he says, “All right, you have the control, Scott.” And you know, I’m doing it all! We’re flying on a beautiful sunny day without a cloud in the sky! Folks, listen - Don’t ever fly with me if that guy’s not there. I mean, don’t ever trust me to do that. Here’s the truth: He could do it without me but I couldn’t do it without him.