Umbrella

“I cry out to the Lord with my voice; With my voice to the Lord I make my supplication. I pour out my complaint before Him; I declare before Him my trouble. When my spirit was overwhelmed within me, Then You knew my path. In the way in which I walk They have secretly set a snare for me. Look on my right hand and see, For there is no one who acknowledges me; Refuge has failed me; No one cares for my soul. I cried out to You, O Lord: I said, “You are my refuge, My portion in the land of the living. Attend to my cry, For I am brought very low; Deliver me from my persecutors, For they are stronger than I. Bring my soul out of prison, That I may praise Your name; The righteous shall surround me, For You shall deal bountifully with me.””
‭‭Psalms‬ ‭142:1-7‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

Umbrella

In my achy, aging body, there is nothing more painful than a cold November rain. It pierces me to the core, causing every joint to call out in pain, reminding me that I should have stayed indoors. In those moments, a huge umbrella is a good thing, as it shields me from the ongoing deluge, giving me shelter in the storm.

I liken the increasing pressure on Christians to the cold, pre-winter rain, beating down and causing much discomfort. The rain is persistent, and never ending, and there are days when one might wonder if the sun will ever shine again.

I love the writings of David, as they offer guidance for followers of Christ. David was a man after God’s own heart, worshipping the Lord in Spirit. He was our forerunner, having loved the Lord and had an intimate relationship with Him.

Psalm 142 was written when David was pursued by Saul and took refuge in the cave at Adullam. He felt so alone, and called out to God. God responded by sending others, of like circumstance.

“David therefore departed from there and escaped to the cave of Adullam. So when his brothers and all his father’s house heard it, they went down there to him. And everyone who was in distress, everyone who was in debt, and everyone who was discontented gathered to him. So he became captain over them. And there were about four hundred men with him.”
I Samuel 22:1-2 NKJV

The Lord brought other refugees to David and he dwelt with the righteous and found protection. God had given him an umbrella to shield him from the cold November rain.

Brothers and sisters, we are entering perilous times, as our world continues to devolve, and the values of God are being actively superseded by those of the evil one. There is great pain for the followers of Jesus, as the awesome powers of the culture, magnified by the media, is being aimed at us.

But.we.have.Jesus

“Fear not, for I am with you; Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, Yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’ “Behold, all those who were incensed against you Shall be ashamed and disgraced; They shall be as nothing, And those who strive with you shall perish.”
Isaiah 41:10-11 NKJV

The Lord provided us shelter from the storm of sin, when He became our umbrella, taking all the rain. Jesus, the sinless Son of God went to the cross and took on the sins of the world, past, present, and future offering forgiveness for all who come to Him by faith.

Those who have availed themselves of such a great gift, have the partnership of God, having the Holy Spirit in them, empowering them to withstand the pressure of these days. He has provided the cave in which we dwell and brought others to be with us, having saved them from their sins. We are refugees from the destruction of sin, taking refuge under the umbrella of the Lord.

He has also given us a job: to go out and reach other people with the Gospel, the umbrella providing coverage from the penalty of sin which is death.

There are so many people, unprotected, getting soaked in the horrible days, and it is our commission tom go out and take the same umbrella that is protecting us and provide the opportunity for cover.

Let us go boldly, telling of this great salvation.

“Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.”
Matthew 28:19-20 NKJV

May we be faithful to do as we have been commissioned, telling of Jesus. There will be day when the rain will cease, and the Son will shine. Let us look forward to that day, finding the strength to stand in the storm that now surrounds us.

As I reflect on David’s cave, I can’t help but look forward, noting the contrast, to the dwelling place that is to come, when the New Jerusalem descends to the new earth. Let us be about gathering others to be with us, as the time is short.

“But I saw no temple in it, for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. The city had no need of the sun or of the moon to shine in it, for the glory of God illuminated it. The Lamb is its light. And the nations of those who are saved shall walk in its light, and the kings of the earth bring their glory and honor into it. Its gates shall not be shut at all by day (there shall be no night there). And they shall bring the glory and the honor of the nations into it. But there shall by no means enter it anything that defiles, or causes an abomination or a lie, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.”
Revelation 21:22-27 NKJV

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