WEDNESDAY'S WORD - SECURE - Sadell Bradley 4/1/20

"The life of the nation is secure only while the nation is honest, truthful, and virtuous." -Frederick Douglass

"What have I to dread? What have I to fear? Leaning on the everlasting arms. I have blessed peace, with my LORD so near. Leaning on the everlasting arms. Leaning, leaning, safe and secure from all alarms. Leaning, leaning, leaning on the everlasting arms." Elisha Hoffman and Anthony Showalter wrote this hymn in 1887 based on the Scripture Deuteronomy 33:27 "The eternal God is thy refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms." The image of a father holding his newborn is powerful. This is a time when we long to feel SECURE - safe, stable and free from fear or anxiety; not subject to threat; certain to remain or continue safe and unharmed. From a spiritual perspective, the first definition of secure in the dictionary may be the prerequisite to the others: fixed or fastened (on God) so as not to give way, become loose, or be lost. Our sense of security is found only in Jesus.

David was a worshiper before he was crowned king. Even as a young man, he would sing to the LORD while protecting his sheepfold. He devoted himself as a lover of God and a warrior for Him. David is described in Acts 13:22 as a man after God's own heart, who would do all of His will. David certainly was flawed, but in 1 Samuel 19, when his envious father-in-law Saul was plotting to kill him; David received providential protection from God from both his friend Jonathan (Saul's son) and his wife Michael (Saul's daughter). God has prescribed ways to provide for us, giving us favor even from the most unlikely places! David wrote Psalm 57 while Saul was pursuing him: 

Have mercy on me, O God, have mercy! I look to You for protection. I will hide beneath the shadow of your wings until the danger passes by. I cry out to God Most High, to God who will fulfill His purpose for me. He will send help from Heaven to rescue me, disgracing those who hound me. My God will send forth His unfailing love and faithfulness. (Ps. 57:1-3)  

We trust God to fulfill His purpose for us. As we lean on His everlasting arms, He will send help from Heaven to rescue us. Our security comes from Him. "What a fellowship, what a joy Divine, leaning on the everlasting arms. What a blessedness, what a peace is mine, leaning on the everlasting arms. Leaning, safe and secure from all alarms. Leaning, leaning, leaning on the everlasting arms."