I sought the Lord, and he answered me; he delivered me from all my fears. Those who look to him are radiant; their faces are never covered with shame.
This poor man called, and the Lord heard him; he saved him out of all his troubles. The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him, and he delivers them.
Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in him. Fear the Lord, you his holy people, for those who fear him lack nothing. The lions may grow weak and hungry, but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing.

The biggest nugget I get from this passage is that God cares for those who are faithful to him in big ways. He loves us. And he wants us to remain in him and rely on him for our strength.

Two angels took out a whole garrison of soldiers surrounding Jesus’ tomb. One destroying angel killed all of the Egyptian first-born sons in Egypt as a judgment on them. And an angel ministered to Elijah with food and water and its nourishment lasted 40 days. This is the power of the angel of the Lord who encamps around those faithful to him.

So the call here is one of courage and resilience. Seek after the Lord and fear him and him alone in troubling times. That is all that is required of us. We do not need to win public opinion polls with our friends or colleagues, we do not need to make sure that others approve of our actions or decisions. We just need to seek the Lord with all our hearts and obey his Word. Yes, God puts some around us to advise us, and this is helpful. But advice is cheap, load-bearing help is where the shoe leather meets the road. So it is those brothers and sisters who are in the trenches with me that I will respect and listen to most. So today, I take heart and courage, because I have sought after God with my life and obeyed his commands. Not perfectly all the time. But in humility I repent where wrong and continue to serve under his authority.

And in the battles of life, I will have his angel camped around me and no good thing will be kept from me. He will save me out of all my trials and as I rely on him faithfully. I will taste of his goodness and it will be oh so sweet!

Lord, thank you for this uplifting and encouraging passage today. I believe it. I claim it. You are over all and back up your faithful spiritual warriors. Fill me with you Spirit and may I exude your grace and forgiveness, your peace and your love! Fill me with joy unspeakable!