Worried about Coronavirus? Focus on God’s Protection Covenant!

Covenant: a formal binding agreement, a promise

In Psalms chapter 91, we find one of the binding agreements that God has made with man. This covenant is just as reliable in a time of trouble as it is in a time of peace. Of course, we must have faith in that covenant and believe that our God is going to perform all of His promises just as He said He would.

In the midst of a world panicking about the novel coronavirus, I would like to break this Psalm and covenant down for you so that you clearly understand what God has promised us.

1. He that dwelleth (lives) in the secret (hidden) place of the most High shall abide (stay) under the shadow (protection) of the Almighty. Under this protection plan we shall be treated as God's guest. You know whenever we are visiting family or friends, we are their guest. And when we come under the roof of anyone who truly cares about us, they tend to take our protection seriously - just as they would their own flesh and blood - and they do everything in their power to make sure that no hurt or harm comes to us. The Lord does the exact same. Even if we are walking along the road, we can simply ask for the performance of this promise. Even though God is up there and we are down here, if we speak the word and believe, we will instantly be in the secret place of the most High; covered and resting under the shadow of the Almighty.

2. I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge (Shelton) and my fortress (defense): my God; in Him will I trust (have total confidence). We all know that when you go to a shelter, it's intended to be a place of safety. This piece of the covenant tells us that the Lord will be our defense, regardless of the storm that's going on in our lives. Have you ever seen the old western movies with the army posts? Everyone is usually inside the fort and they have big gates with tall walls and men walking to and fro with weapons. Those men make sure that no one comes in and that no one goes out without some sort of protection; everybody who's inside the fortress feels safe. It’s the same way with God - when we are under His shadow, Angels are continually walking around protecting God's people.

3. Surely (not liable to fail) he shall deliver (rescue) thee from the snare (trap) of the fowler (haters of God's love and light) and from the noisome pestilence (people that try to bring us their darkness). These noisome pests can be just like mosquitoes that buzz constantly in your ear. The good news here is that as long as we are covered under the Almighty's protection, those pests will have to go through God before they can get to us. However, the choice is ours, we can choose to stay under the light of God's protection or we can listen to those noisome pestilence, which might lead us astray. God leaves that choice up to us. 

4. He shall cover (conceal) thee with His feathers (feathers in the spiritual speaks of love) and under His wings shalt thou trust; His truth (trustworthiness) shall be the shield (defensive armor) and buckler (something that surrounds a person). You might be familiar with how a mother hen hovers over her chicks and if anyone comes along trying to mess with or take her babies, she’ll peck them! That mother hen sits right there covering her chicks with her feathers of love and under her wings. God will hover over us just like that mother hen and will peck anyone who tries to harm us!

I'll be back next week with more on this awesome covenant; until then --

With all that said, let the Church say Amen... and AMEN!