Hidden and Covered

Oh, how abundant is your goodness,

which you have stored up for those who fear you

and worked for those who take refuge in you,

in the sight of the children of mankind!

 In the cover of your presence you hide them

from the plots of men; you store them in your shelter

from the strife of tongues.   Blessed be the Lord,

for he has wondrously shown his steadfast love to me

when I was in a besieged city.   I had said in my alarm,

“I am cut off from your sight.”

But you heard the voice of my pleas for mercy

when I cried to you for help.

Psalm 31:19-22 

No wonder David was considered a man after God's own heart.   Here again he is rendering himself full of despair, surrounded by his enemies and the recognition of his own sinful self.  His tears have exhausted him; his strength is almost gone.  And yet what does he do?  He remembers the God who has come to his rescue countless times, and He prays to Him, and he praises Him.

 The obvious are those things which have happened to us, good or bad, that which we have seen with our eyes.  We can relate to them; we know our joy or our pain.  We can easily tell others about the incidences.  What is not so obvious are all the things that we have been saved from.  "In the cover of your presence you hide them from the plots of men."  

I drive somewhere almost every day.  How many times have I been saved from a crazy person, or someone on drugs, or someone intoxicated driving down the road?    When have I been in a parking lot with a murderer waiting for his next victim?  (We knew a man who was gunned down for yelling, "hey!" at someone who was trying to grab a woman's purse at Wal Mart.)  There is no place that we can hide from possible calamity--except in the arms of our Savior.  At that point we may rest secure that whatever comes into our lives is for our good and His glory.

My point is not to be a doomsayer, but to encourage us all to realize what a great and glorious God we serve, the One who hides us in the cover of His presence.  That's what David did, and he was loved by God as a man after His own heart. 

As we go about our Christmas shopping, do our chores, sleep in our beds, love on our children or grandchildren, go to work, or whatever else we do today, let's take the time to praise our God for hiding us in the cover of His presence.

Hidden and covered,

Gloria