God’s Got Us
Covered
by Gloria Copeland
When I was a little girl, my granddad had a storm cellar.
The best one in the little town where we lived, it was a very popular place.
Even though (as far as I can recall) we never got hit by any life-threatening
storms, my kinfolk never took any chances.
We all headed for Pop’s cellar at the first sign of
troublesome weather. At the time, I thought it was all pretty exciting. I liked
the idea of having a refuge from the storm.
Truth be told, I still do.
These days, however, I want a refuge that protects me from
more than just bad weather. I want a shelter from every other kind of danger as
well, because these are perilous times we’re living in. We’re in the last days
before Jesus returns. These are the days He was talking about in Matthew
24:7-8, New Living Translation-96,
when He said: “The nations and kingdoms will proclaim war against each other,
and there will be famines and earthquakes in many parts of the world. But all
this will be only the beginning of the horrors to come.”
Normally, the word horrors,
which is used in that translation, isn’t one I like very much. But I have
to admit, it fits some of what we’re seeing right now. There’s been a startling
increase in evil here in America in just the past 20 years or so. People are
behaving in crazy, devilish ways. Parents are killing children; children are
killing parents. Young people are committing mass murder. We don’t know what
will happen next.
Personally, I believe the Church will be raptured out of
here before the worst comes. But even so, I don’t know how much this world is
going to deteriorate before we’re gone. Things could really get bad.
I’m not afraid, though, and you don’t have to be either,
because God promised to protect us right in the middle of it all. He said He
will be our refuge.
God is a far greater refuge than my granddad’s storm cellar
ever was! He’s with us wherever we go. If we’ll stay connected to Him, we can
drive around in our car, fly on an airplane or walk down any street in any city
in the world without ever leaving our shelter.
God’s got us covered all the time!
Of course, to benefit from His covering, we have to do our
part. We can’t just live anyway we want, not pay God much attention, and think,
Well, if I ever get in trouble, I’ll
pray. On the contrary! If we want to see God’s promises of protection
fulfilled in our lives, we have to remember and act on what Psalm 91:1 says:
“He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the
shadow of the Almighty.”
The Hebrew word translated dwelleth means “to lodge somewhere.” It refers to a place where you
live, remain and stay. When you’re dwelling in God’s secret place and abiding
in His shadow, you don’t come and go in your relationship with Him. You don’t
live all week trying to see what you can get away with and then show up at
church on Sunday. You’re in fellowship with the Lord and endeavoring to obey
Him every day. You’re living in all the light you have and always seeking more
light.
I’m not saying you have to be perfect, of course. None of us
is perfect. But as an abider, when you do stumble, you quickly repent and get
things right again.
Living in a Bubble
In John 15:7, Jesus connected the concept of abiding with
the Word of God. He said, “If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye
shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.”
How do you know when the Word is abiding in you? It talks to
you! It directs your thoughts as you go about your day. It comes to your mind
when challenges arise, and helps you know what to do.
I’ve found in my own life that if I want the Word to abide
in me I have to spend time in it. I can’t just read it casually every now and
then. I can’t just listen to sermons and let them go in one ear and out the
other. I have to be diligent to read the Word and meditate on it every day and
obey it. I must treat it like a priceless treasure.
That’s not hard for me to do because I love the Word of
God. It’s precious to me. My
deliverance, safety and well-being in life depend on it.
The same is true for you. So stir up your love for the Word
by not only reading it, but believing what it says. Make it the most important
thing in your life! Renew your mind to the fact that when you’re abiding in the
Word, you’re abiding in your supernatural, divine shelter. You’re living,
protected from all harm, in the secret place of the Most High.
There’s nothing better than
dwelling in the secret place!
It’s a bubble of protection where you’re surrounded with God
Himself on every side. It’s a place where you’re concealed from your enemies
and hidden from danger.
If you want to see how secure this divine place of
protection can be, read in the New Testament about how Jesus walked unharmed
right through the middle of a mob of people who wanted to murder Him. They
couldn’t touch Him because He was concealed in the secret place.
Or read the Old Testament story about how Shadrach, Meshach
and Abednego came out of the fiery furnace without a hair on their head being
singed and without even the smell of smoke on their clothes. The fire couldn’t
hurt them because they were in a supernatural bubble, completely encased by the
power of God.
You can have that kind of protection, too, when you’re
abiding in the secret place. The Bible promises it again and again in scriptures
like these:
·
“Blessed be the Lord my strength...my fortress; my high
tower, and my deliverer; my shield, and he in whom I trust.” (Psalm 144:1-2)
·
“But let all those that put their trust in thee rejoice: let
them ever shout for joy, because thou defendest them: let them also that love
thy name be joyful in thee. For thou, Lord, wilt bless the righteous; with
favour wilt thou compass him as with a shield.” (Psalm 5:11-12)
·
“Thou art my hiding place and my shield: I hope in thy
word.” (Psalm 119:114)
·
“The Lord is thy keeper: the Lord is thy shade upon thy
right hand. The Lord shall preserve thee from all evil: he shall preserve thy
soul. The Lord shall preserve thy going out and thy coming in from this time
forth, and even for evermore.” (Psalm 121:5, 7-8)
·
“Though an host should encamp against me, my heart shall not
fear: though war should rise against me, in this will I be confident. For in
the time of trouble he shall hide me in his pavilion: in the secret of his
tabernacle shall he hide me; he shall set me up upon a rock. And now shall mine
head be lifted up above mine enemies round about me.” (Psalm 27:3, 5-6)
Notice those verses say that the Lord encompasses us like a
fortress with His protection. He encircles us with His power so that when our
enemies try to surround us, they find we’ve already been surrounded. They can’t
get to us because God already has us covered all the way around!
Activate Your
Protection With Words of Faith
“But Gloria,” you might say, “I love the Lord and His Word.
I do my best to walk with Him and abide in Him, but I’m still not experiencing
the kind of protection you’re talking about. Is there something else I need to
do?”
Yes! Look again at Psalm 91 and you’ll see what it is.
According to verse 2, to dwell in God’s secret place we must make this
declaration, “I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God;
in him will I trust.”
Why is it so important to say such
words?
Because that’s how we receive everything God provides for
us. We believe in our heart what He says in His Word, and confess it with our
mouth. We act on what Jesus taught in Mark 11:23: “Whosoever shall say...and
shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he
saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith.”
Isn’t that how you got saved? Didn’t you believe in your
heart and confess with your mouth, “Jesus is my Lord and Savior”? Well, you
receive protection the same way. You believe what the Bible teaches about it
and say of the Lord, in every situation, “He is my refuge and my fortress.”
God’s promises don’t just work for us automatically because
they’re in the Bible. They have to be activated by faith-filled words. That’s
why over the years, I’ve made God’s promises of protection a daily part of my
prayer life.
Every morning I pray for myself and my family members by
name, plead the blood of Jesus over us, and declare that God is our refuge. I
say things like, “Thank You, Lord, for our divine bubble of protection. Thank
You for being our Shelter and our Shield today. You surround us so that no
weapon formed against us will succeed, in Jesus’ Name.”
One morning a few years back, I was reminded in a big way
just how vital such prayers can be. Not long after I finished praying, the
ground under my feet began to shake. Ken and I were in a hotel in Hawaii at the
time, on the 13th floor. We realized right away we were in an
earthquake!
At times like that, you really find out what’s in you,
because before you can even think, it comes out of your mouth. I’m happy to
report that what came out of our mouths at that moment was the Word of God.
Unlike the lady in the room next to us who ran out into the hall repeating a
curse word over and over, Ken and I instantly took authority over the situation
in Jesus’ Name. We declared God’s promises of protection at the top of our
lungs. Then, calm as could be, we did what the Lord prompted us to do.
Although the hotel personnel had informed us the airport was
closed and no flights would be going out, we felt led to go to the airport
anyway. Sure enough, our flight departed as scheduled and, instead of being
stuck in a hotel with no electricity and no restaurants (they all closed down)
for the next few days, we went back to Texas, safe and sound, and enjoyed the
comforts of home.
Bad Day at Black
Rock
One thing I particularly remember about that earthquake is
this: Ken and I had absolutely no fear when it hit. We didn’t have to try not
to be afraid. Fear just wasn’t there!
That’s not to say we’re totally immune to fear. On occasion,
it does try to rear its ugly head. But whenever it does, we throw a Holy Ghost
fit. We run it out of our lives with the Word of God and refuse to entertain it
for a second.
Why are we so determined to stay
free of fear?
Because it’s impossible to trust in the Lord and be afraid
at the same time; and trusting in the Lord is essential to keeping God’s
protective covering intact.
Look again at Psalm 91:2-5 and you’ll see what I mean. It
says: “The Lord is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust.
Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome
pestilence. He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt
thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler. Thou shalt not be
afraid.”
You can’t be afraid while you’re taking the Lord as your
refuge. You can’t exercise your faith in God as your protection while you’re
wringing your hands and saying, “I’m afraid of storms. I’m afraid of tornadoes.
I’m afraid of airplanes...and earthquakes...and whatever else.”
Fear is deadly. It opens the door to the devil. When you let
it into your life, you’re saying to him, “Come on in!”
So anytime fear tries to come on you in any area of life,
rebuke it. Resist it. Get scriptures that contradict what fear is saying to you
and swing them at fear like a sword. Be violent about driving out all fear and
seize the promises of protection God has given you. As Jesus said, “The violent
take it by force” (Matthew 11:12)!
“But isn’t that unrealistic?” you might ask. “Won’t there be
times in my life when I can’t help being afraid?”
No, there won’t if you take action
on God’s Word.
According to Psalm 91:7 even if “a thousand shall fall at
thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand,” you shall not be afraid because
“it shall not come nigh thee.”
I don’t know how you would categorize that kind of
situation, but I’d call it a bad day at Black Rock. It doesn’t get much worse
than seeing 11,000 people killed on every side and being the lone survivor.
Yet, the Bible says we can go through even that kind of devastation unafraid
and unharmed, if we abide in the secret place of the Most High, say of the
Lord, “He is my refuge,” and trust in Him.
As long as we do those three things, we can live—even in
these dangerous times—in a bubble of supernatural protection. We can know that
we’re safe anywhere we go, no matter what’s happening around us, because God’s
got us covered! V
Enjoyed this article? For more insightful teachings, go to kcm.org
PULL QUOTES:
1. The Hebrew word
translated dwelleth means “to lodge
somewhere.” It refers to a place where you live, remain and stay.
Gems “Today, you are a picture of what you spoke from your heart in the
past. Points to Get You There: Protection
We’re living in dangerous days—and they’re getting more
dangerous all the time. But, as believers, we don’t have to be afraid because
God has promised to protect us. He’s got us covered all the time! Here are a
few points to help you stay safe inside His bubble of protection:
1)
Don’t come and go in your relationship with the Lord, live
in fellowship with Him all the time. Psalm 91:1: “He that dwelleth in the
secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.”
2)
Stir up your love for God’s Word by reading it daily and believing
what it says. John 15:7: “If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye
shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.”
3)
Activate God’s promises of protection by speaking
faith-filled words. Psalm 91:2: “I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my
fortress: my God; in him will I trust.”
4)
Use God’s promises of protection to drive all fear out of
your life. Psalm 91:4-5: “He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his
wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler. Thou shalt
not be afraid....”
5)
No matter what happens, keep trusting God. Psalm
144:1-2: “Blessed be the Lord my strength, which teacheth my hands to war, and
my fingers to fight: my goodness, and my fortress; my high tower, and my
deliverer; my shield, and he in whom I trust.”
Reprinted from the July 2013 issue of the Believer’s Voice
of Victory magazine with permission from Kenneth Copeland Ministries.
