By Rev. Aidan Moon

In the Shelter of the Most High

You can listen to today’s devotion by clicking this SoundCloud link. 

“He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High
will abide in the shadow of the Almighty.
I will say to the Lord, “My refuge and my fortress,
my God, in whom I trust.”
– Psalm 91:1 English Standard Version

Light and darkness are powerful themes in God’s Word. Normally, we think of light and darkness in terms of “Good and Evil,” but in this Psalm we see that God himself casts a shadow. A shadow can be a shelter.

What does it mean to live life in God’s shadow? I think this image of our firstborn captures this in some way. The shadows are stark, and powerful. Yet, he plays happily in the midst of it. He doesn’t have a care. For him, the shadows are a sign of shelter. He dwells in safety. He is in a place of peace.

You and I can find shelter hidden in God’s shadow. Because even when we don’t see God, we still shelter in the shadow cast by his presence. God shows himself in subtle, even backward seeming ways. It might be a word of comfort from a friend. A word of forgiveness in Jesus’ name. Even the bread and the wine are not the brilliant light of God, but a shadow of his presence. But because he has shown us his faithfulness by sending his Son to deliver us from sin and evil, we trust him. And so we live under even the shadow he casts. We are sheltered by a God who is mighty, all-powerful – who casts a big shadow. We are in the shadow of a God who protects us from all the evil forces that would attack us day by day. Abiding in God’s shadow is about life lived in trust in the God who created and still protects us, and who promises to be present – even in the shadows.

Copyright Family of Christ Lutheran Church, Colorado Springs, Colorado