December 27, 2023 -- Psalm 91:1-2 -- The LORD Almighty is MY God

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He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High
    will abide in the shadow of the Almighty.
2 I will say to the Lord, “My refuge and my fortress,
    my God, in whom I trust.”
Psalm 91:1-2

We are a few days away from the start of a brand new year. We have no idea what is in store for us in 2024. Think back and remember some of the joys and the challenges of previous years. SARS. Fall of Berlin Wall. Gulf War. The Platinum Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II. Covid-19. As the New Year is in bud, who knows that its flowering may be? Well, the LORD does.

I have heard this Psalm, as well as Psalm 90, read or preached in so many New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day worship services, that my mind inevitably links them both to this time of the year. Look at the confidence of the Psalmist, who has faced hardships in the past. It is expressed in the four ways he addresses God.

He calls God the Most High—King of Kings and LORD of Lords. The Only One Who knows all things. He Who is LORD of all history.

The Almighty—that is Omnipotent, all powerful. No one, or thing, or circumstance can even stand in His presence, let alone threaten Him. He is Self-Existent and the Sole-Source of Life and Everything good.

The LORD—this Name is our God’s Self-Revelation to Moses at the burning bush in the wilderness. The Covenant-Making, Promise-Keeping God. Even when all His people fail and rebel, the LORD will keep His promises and bring His salvation. Salvation is found in no one else.

My God. What a personal testimony. This moves the LORD of the Universe from some lofty, exalted, far-away theoretical existence and demonstrates the writer’s deep, personal connection with the Most-High, the Almighty, Him Who is the LORD, my God. He has revealed Himself to be so personal in Jesus Christ. It is in Jesus that the radiance of the Father’s glory is revealed. It is in Jesus that our sins are forgiven and we have life.

How has the writer experienced the Almighty in such a personal way? When he was neck-deep in trouble the LORD was (and in confidence he is declaring this God will again be) ‘my refuge’ and ‘my fortress’. When do you need a fortress or a refuge? When there is war. When there is pestilence. When there are enemies on all sides, in all joys or any troubles, the LORD, my God, is able to abundantly provide. What a beautiful message to carry into the New Year.

Teach us to number our days
that we may gain a heart of wisdom.
Return, O LORD! How long?
Have pity on Your servants!
Satisfy us in the morning with Your steadfast love,
that we may rejoice and be glad all our days.
Make us glad for as many days as You have afflicted us,
and for as many years as we have seen evil.
Let Your work be shown to Your servants,
and Your glorious power to their children.
Let the favour of the Lord our God be upon us,
and establish the work of our hands upon us,
yes, establish the work of our hands.
Psalm 90:12-17 ESV

https://youtu.be/znmZswr2J2w?si=aFsL0BIFlTxvUWUr “God Moves in a Mysterious Way”

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