Dwelling Confidently in the Shadow of the Most High

Faith is not only for resolving crises. Faith is not only for getting out of trouble and correcting deficiencies! Above all, faith is for living life proactively, for sustaining a constructive and powerful spiritual journey. It serves to forestall and prevent crises, to keep the enemy in checkmate, at bay, subject to God’s good purposes. Faith allows our lives to prosper and be blessed.

Some believers live in a state of perpetual spiritual warfare. They are always at war with the devil. While it is true that we must be sober and watchful, as Scripture counsels us, it is also true that we can exaggerate how agonizing that struggle against evil is and fight unnecessary battles that God never called us to fight.

I hope you understand, dear brother or sister, the difference between always living on the defensive, continually begging God to get you out of the trouble into which the devil, or your own mistakes and weakness, have landed you—and living a stable, confident life, protected by solid walls of wisdom and spiritual discernment, nourished and illuminated by the word of God, moving securely toward ever higher levels of maturity and joy in the Lord.

This reminds me of the psalmist’s words in Psalm 125: “Those who trust in the LORD are like Mount Zion, which cannot be moved, but remains forever.” Or the beautiful words of Moses’ blessing to the tribe of Benjamin in Deuteronomy 33:12: “The beloved of the LORD shall dwell securely near him; he shall cover him always, and he shall dwell between his shoulders.” The normal posture of a healthy, mature believer is one of peace and security, of trust in the protection and shelter of Almighty God.

Now, when the Enemy rises against us and wants to take away what God has granted us, a son or daughter of God must know how to defend themselves effectively and how to preserve their inheritance. We must be like King David, who, when he was a shepherd, always knew how to defend his sheep from the lion or the bear. In his first conversation with Saul, he tells the king: “Your servant was tending his father’s sheep; and when a lion or a bear came and took a lamb from the flock, I went after it, struck it, and rescued the lamb from its mouth; and if it rose against me, I seized it by the jaw, struck it, and killed it.” When the devil rises against us, seeking to harm those whom God has entrusted to us, we must be ready to snatch them back from him and strike back at him effectively!

In other words, the Christian life is not to be lived on the defensive, continually resolving one crisis after another. The believer has been called to dwell confidently in God’s blessing and prosperity. Christ has said, “I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it abundantly.” He did not say, “I have come that they may survive,” but “that they may have life abundantly.” And faith is the channel, the instrument, the conduit through which God can bring about and carry out the good purposes he has for our lives.