Early in the Morning...
A devotional from Linda Palmer
The Man Upstairs
“Those
who live in the shelter of the Most High will find rest in
the shadow of the Almighty.
This I declare about the Lord:
He alone is my refuge, my place of safety; he is my
God, and I trust him. For he will rescue you from every trap
and protect you from deadly disease.
He will cover you with his feathers.
He will shelter you with his wings.
His faithful promises are your armor and protection.
Do not be afraid of the terrors of the night, nor the
arrow that flies in the day.”
Psalm 91: 1-5 NLT
My dad was a professional firefighter.
While I was growing up, I got used to him being home
48 hours and at the station 24 hours.
One of the neatest things about him being at the fire
station for a whole day and night was that we got to go to
the station in the evening to see him.
So even though he wasn’t home, he was still
accessible. I
still marvel at how clean the engines were… and how a bunch
of men kept that station so clean without any women to help.
Anyway…
When my sister and I were old enough to stay up later than
dad, we would usually watch TV… this was the 60’s… no video
games or computers.
The nights dad was home were different than when he
was at the station.
It seemed like when he was home we didn’t hear every
little creak in the house.
We could watch TV and have an amazing sense of peace…
we would even turn off the lights.
We weren’t frightened… dad was upstairs and we were
safe.
It just wasn’t the same when he was gone.
Everything seemed to be out of whack when he was at
the station. Our
routine didn’t vary that much, but the sense of peace was
not so strong.
When I became a Christian, it wasn’t too difficult
for me to understand Psalm 91.
I had memories of how safe I felt with my dad around.
I just had to multiply that feeling by oh… about a
zillion. I also
didn’t have to worry about God working 24 hours and taking
off the next 48 hours.
He is always home… watching over me…keeping me
safe…filling me with His peace.
I am blessed to have such an amazing dad.
He’s not perfect, but I’m the only one who can get
away with saying that… I believe he did his earthly best.
When one grows up with a dad like mine, trusting God
is probably easier.
I know that not everyone is as blessed as me.
Sadly, there are some people who just can’t separate
what they have experienced on Earth with what God has to
offer. My heart
aches for them.
It takes them longer to trust that God is their forever
Man Upstairs.
Some people have never known their fathers.
Still others had fathers who were physically or
verbally abusive… or just not there emotionally…not the best
scenarios for learning how to trust and be at peace.
Perhaps you know someone who is struggling in their
walk with God… or maybe they just refuse to acknowledge His
existence at all. The
relationship they had with their dad may have been poor or
non-existent. You
could be that bridge from a life of no peace and security to
a life filled with peace, contentment and assurance… a
bridge to Jesus… a bridge to the
Man Upstairs.
Keep Seeking Him,
Linda Palmer
