Safe Growth

Deliver me and rescue me from the hands of foreigners whose mouths are full of lies, whose right hands are deceitful.  Then our sons in their youth will be like well-nurtured plants, and our daughters will be like pillars carved to adorn a palace. Our barns will be filled with every kind of provision. Our sheep will increase by thousands, by tens of thousands in our fields; our oxen will draw heavy loads. There will be no breaching of the walls, no going into captivity, no cry of distress on our streets.

Blessed are the people of whom this is true; blessed are the people whose God is the Lord. Psalm 144: 11-15; Psalm 3

Deep down many believe that with growth comes an increased danger of the walls being breached. Someone has said that in the world, high places are slippery places. Not so with God. He wants us to have the capacity to handle blessing, which starts with the knowledge that every sheep, pillar, ox, and field is his. Every paycheck, bonus, stock option, and pension plan, too.

Many are saying of me, ‘God will not deliver him.’ But You are a shield around me, O Lord; You bestow glory on me and lift my head… I lie down and sleep; I awake again, because the Lord sustains me. From the Lord comes deliverance. May Your blessing be on Your people. 

Reflections

• Are you perhaps avoiding growth, increase, or improvement for fear it will lead to a slide down a slippery slope?
• Which part of this is wisdom, and which part is fear?