I don’t know about you, but I have been dealing with a lot of fear this Christmas season. Fear from the unknown, fear from the struggles I am facing, and fear of the future. I have been quite overwhelmed with fear and I know where this fear is coming from. I know Satan wants to bind me in fear to hold me back. But sometimes, the fear washes over me in overwhelming ways.

I felt God calling me to read Psalm 91 and I want to share half the chapter with you because in so many ways, I felt refreshed and reminded that God is constantly watching over me.

¹He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. ² I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress; My God, in Him I will trust.”

³ Surely He shall deliver you from the snare of the fowler And from the perilous pestilence. ⁴ He shall cover you with His feathers, And under His wings you shall take refuge; His truth shall be your shield and buckler. ⁵ You shall not be afraid of the terror by night, Nor of the arrow that flies by day, ⁶ Nor of the pestilence that walks in darkness, Nor of the destruction that lays waste at noonday.

⁷ A thousand may fall at your side, And ten thousand at your right hand; But it shall not come near you. ⁸ Only with your eyes shall you look, And see the reward of the wicked.

⁹ Because you have made the Lord, who is my refuge, Even the Most High, your dwelling place, ¹⁰ No evil shall befall you, Nor shall any plague come near your dwelling; ¹¹ For He shall give His angels charge over you, To keep you in all your ways.

After reading this chapter, I began praying and asking God to help remind me that He delivers me from the fowler’s snare, from the terror by night and the pestilence that walks in the darkness. I have to remind myself that when I make my God my resting place, no evil can befall me. He will protect me from any plague and His angels are keeping charge over me at all times.

A mighty God is watching and protecting me and you. A God who created the universe, the mountains, the annoying squirrels and mosquitoes is watching, defending, and loving us in every step in life.

I know you’re probably thinking, “Monica, I don’t feel like God’s protecting me from the pestilence in the darkness or the plague!”

I know how you feel. I told God that; I told Him, “I don’t feel like You’re protecting me, I don’t feel like You’re keeping evil away from me!”

I felt God telling me to call my mentor and ask for prayer. I did and talked to her for a little while. She helped me realize on where I was putting my focus on: the unknown, the future. I was basing the mysterious future off of my past experience – which is where Satan wanted me. Remember, his evil plans begin by reinforcing your past experiences into future ones, which haven’t happened yet!

My mentor reminded me to focus on today and today only. I cannot be fearful of the future because the future is in God’s hands; which He is protecting me still in the future as much as He is doing so in the present.

She also reminded me to focus on the good. Which, in a state of fear, it’s nearly impossible to focus on. But she made me speak some good things that were happening and helped me put them into perspective. 

Psalm 91 doesn’t promise a fearless life – it promises us a God who is watching us and is our refuge when those times come. It’s a promise that God is there when the darkness begins to shallow us whole. It’s also a promise of His love for us – love that is willing to take the arrow by night and to place Himself between us and the terror that follows us.

Evil is around us constantly and sometimes evil is spawn in our own households. But knowing that there is a God who promises protection from the evil and making a safe house for us is a promise He has kept since the day you became His child. Maybe it doesn’t seem like it, but I fully believe that if you’re in the presence of God, when evil comes your way, you can walk through it with peace in your heart knowing that you’re in the shadow of our God.

The last three verses of Psalm 91 ends like this:

¹⁴ “Because he has set his love upon Me, therefore I will deliver him; I will set him on high, because he has known My name. ¹⁵ He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him and honor him. ¹⁶ With long life I will satisfy him, And show him My salvation.”

Now that’s a PROMISE. I know my fear is still there, but I have to remember that God is near to me and He has shown me His salvation over and over again. Salvation may come in the form of having a friend remind me that I need to look at the present and be grateful of the small gifts God gives me.

So this Christmas season, when fear hits you again, remember Psalm 91, God’s promises, look for the good things in your life, be thankful for the small, little blessings God is giving you, and praise Him for those things. I know I’m still learning this lesson, so let’s learn together! Let this Christmas season be one of gratefulness for small blessings and positive moments so the glory can go to our Father!