Like a Mountain

I have always loved mountains.  Maybe it’s because since I was about six years old my parents would take a trip to Baguio at least once a year.  There’s something about a mountain, it’s majesty and strength, that amazes me.

What I love about the road that I take going home is it has a view of Mt Kanlaon.  It almost seems like the road is going straight towards it.  I love looking at the mountain.  It’s a symbol of strength, majesty and permanence.  There are times I feel that it calls me, draws me to it, especially during times when I need a break, or a breather from all the hustle and bustle of life. 

There is another “mountain” that I run to everyday.  Psalm 125:1-2 shares that with us.

Psalm 125:1  A song of ascents. Those who trust in the LORD are like Mount Zion, which cannot be shaken but endures forever.
Psalm 125:2  As the mountains surround Jerusalem, so the LORD surrounds his people both now and forevermore.

In this psalm the psalmist was obviously in awe of the majesty of Mount Zion .  And a pilgrim traveling from his place to Jerusalem to worship the Lord would have a view of this mountain.  As the psalmist reflects on the strength and majesty of it, he relates it both to us and the Lord.

Those who trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion…it cannot be shaken.  Why?  Because we trust in Someone who is strong, who is omnipotent, who is trustworthy and true.  If we trust in people, in things, in circumstances, they will eventually fail us.  But if we trust in the Lord He keeps us strong and firm as we walk in this uncertain world.

And just as being surrounded makes you feel protected, so those who trust in the Lord will be surrounded by the Lord, protected in our way.  This is the benefit we have as we entrust our walk and our way to the Lord – He surrounds us, protects us, guides us so that our hearts remain strong, assured and hopeful that He will make our paths straight.  A storm may pick up strength while it is travelling above the sea, but the moment it hits the mountains its strength is weakened.  That’s why cities or towns surrounded by mountains are always protected against storms.

May we have the strength of a mountain as we trust in our Lord, and as He surrounds us as a mountain.

Coincidence? No such thing.

Coincidence. The “Word Web” dictionary defines it as:  An event that might have been arranged although it was really accidental.  I don’t believe in coincidence.  Things that happen that seem to be coincidence are actually events that might have been accidental although it was really arranged – by God.

Yesterday, Friday, I received an alert in my cell phone that there was a fire in the Pao de Arco complex sometime in the afternoon.  I was home at the time, and when I received the alert my heart jumped!  Why, you may ask?  At that same moment, more or less, I was scheduled to speak to the employees of Pao de Arco in their regular gathering for Bible study.  It was supposed to be Friday afternoon.  For some reason it was postponed to another day.

Coincidence?  When you believe in a God who is Sovereign over your life, who guards you day by day, moment by moment, you don’t believe in coincidence.  Everything that happens in our life is orchestrated and planned by our Lord Himself.

Prov 16:9  In his heart a man plans his course, but the LORD determines his steps.

Psa 91:14  "Because he loves me," says the LORD, "I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.
Psa 91:15  He will call upon me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him.
Psa 91:16  With long life will I satisfy him and show him my salvation."

If our total trust is in the Lord, every appointment, every circumstance, whether seemingly good or bad (notice the word “seemingly” – we need to be careful not to be fooled by how circumstances look), is in His hands.  And if our life has been entrusted to Him, if we belong to Him, He has our life in His control.

Rom 8:28  And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.

I thank God for His protection upon me and those who were supposed to attend the Bible study in Pao de Arco.  He is faithful.

Non-stop praying

Pray Continually.  1 Thes 5:17

Many months ago I wrote about how I have this habit of quoting a verse of Scripture as a prayer every time my older children would leave the house and commute to school, church ministry center, or anywhere they would go.  Here is that verse:

Psalm 91:11-12  For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways;
12  they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.

So I would pray “Lord, command your angels to guard them in all their ways”.  Here in Bacolod we may have less crime compared to Manila or Cebu, but we still do have our cases of holdups, snatching and slashing of bags.  And, who knows when an accident will happen?  And so every time they travel my prayer is that the Lord may protect my kids, and charge His angels to guard them always.

When my daughter left for her training stint in Singapore of course my prayers continued, especially since I would not be able to see her at the end of the day to assure me that everything went well and she did have the protection of the Lord with her.  But you would think that there would be no need for prayers, knowing that Singapore is such a safe and modern place.  The streets are well lighted the whole night.  There are cameras in the streets that keep watch.  And the crime rate is really low.  You would think that in such a modern and almost perfect society you would not need the protection of the Lord.

Until I heard from my daughter, and saw in the news, that a 14 yr old girl fell into the tracks of their MRT, and if I’m right lost her legs, or at least almost lost them.  That’s where I realized that no matter how modern or efficient a society may be, yet the need for the protection of the Lord is always there!  No one is perfect, no society is so perfect as to not need the Lord’s guidance and protection always.

It’s when things seem so smooth and flawless that we need to remind ourselves that we still need the presence and guidance of our Lord.  When things are going well, and it seems that there is no need for the Lord’s protection or guidance, we tend to put our guards down, and just trust in society, circumstances, or even ourselves.  But we need to pray without ceasing.  We always need the Lord’s protection, guidance and presence.  We need to pray without ceasing.