November 10, 2018 • Life for Leaders
I lift up my eyes to the mountains—
where does my help come from?
My help comes from the LORD,
the Maker of heaven and earth.
He will not let your foot slip—
he who watches over you will not slumber;
Indeed, he who watches over Israel
will neither slumber nor sleep.
The LORD watches over you—
the LORD is your shade at your right hand;
the sun will not harm you by day,
nor the moon by night.
The LORD will keep you from all harm—
he will watch over your life;
the LORD will watch over your coming and going
both now and forevermore.
Psalm 121
From time to time, a young dad and his son go for a walk in our neighborhood. The little boy is five and just started kindergarten this year. He is curly-haired, caramel-skinned, full of energy and smiles and giggles.
His dad is tall and lean, a head full of curls, and has a serious case of love for his son.
The other day, the two passed my window in fits and starts—sometimes running, sometimes walking backwards, sometimes crouching down as if readying for a 100-meter dash, sometimes wandering from the road to peer more closely at a rock or a leaf or a small blade of grass.
As they reached the corner, the young boy stopped, apparently done with walking or running or anything else. I watched his dad bend down closer to hear what the son had to say. Then, in one gigantic swoop of his arms, the dad lifted his son to his shoulders to carry the small boy home.
Watching them made me smile. Then, the little boy suddenly arched his back and let himself go so that he swung upside down from his father’s shoulders. I gasped, sure the young father had been caught off-guard and the son would land head-first on the asphalt. But the dad didn’t miss a beat. He kept walking, holding the little boy’s ankles safely and letting his son hang freely and securely, watching the world go by from this new vantage point.
You know where this is headed, don’t you?
Our Father has the very best hold on us and is never caught off guard. He is with us, every step of the way, holding us securely, no matter what. May we trust him enough to let go.
Something to Think About:
When was the last time you felt secure? Did you also feel free?
Something to Do:
Look at the world from a different vantage point. Hang upside down from a tree limb. Lie in the grass and look up at the sky. Wander off the path to stare at a bug, or a rock, or a blade of grass.
Prayer:
Thank you for having a secure hold on me, Lord, while still letting me be free. Thank you for being trustworthy and fun-loving. Help me to trust you enough to let go. Amen.
Explore more at The High Calling archive, hosted by the Theology of Work Project:
Best of Daily Reflections: Does the Lord Really Keep Us from All Harm?
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Deidra,
Your writing is more like a video than a statement; I am forced to see it all, in detail, as you move from frame to frame. Often times words are forgotten even those we have attempted to memorize, but pictures are fixed in our mind’s eye forever. Upon recall, they spring to life as if they were being seen for the very first time. As I read today’s Life For Leaders, I am adding more pictures to my photo album; a curly headed caramel skinned boy and his dad who is so loving one cannot help but picture a smile that runs ear to ear. I long to call up pictures like those of my own, but those album pages were never filled.
Thanks for the pictorial prose for it refills my empty pages, and allows me to see from an entirely new perspective. It is exciting to see that love wins every time, but first, you must be able to visualize it.