Psalm 60:4 I long to dwell in
your tent forever and take refuge in the shelter of your wings.
Things didn’t go according to plan at a wedding in
Scotland yesterday. A tame owl had been specially trained to carry the wedding
rings and land on a perch beside the outside altar. It was supposed to be a
wonderfully synchronized event. However, the piper began playing just as the owl
was signaled to fly. A scared lapwing shot out of the bushes and the owl chased
its prey up into a tree. The lapwing escaped but the owl remained perched on a
branch. The wedding rings were still attached to its legs!
As one of my Scottish friends wrote: what a hoot!
Eventually the owl was coaxed down from the tree and the ceremony continued. If
Robert Burns had been around, I guess he could have penned the immortal lines:
“the best laid schemes of owls and pipers gang aft agley.”
When the psalmist wrote about taking refuge in the
shelter of God’s wings, he wasn’t literally saying that God had wings. He was
using a metaphor to describe his absolute confidence in God’s protection. In the
midst of his personal troubles and crisis, he had the utmost faith in God’s
guidance and deliverance. Even if all of the psalmist’s plans went haywire, he
would be still be assured of God’s grace and love.
To me, this is what makes faith so important –it gives
us a hope in God that He will not abandon us, and a love from God that can never
be extinguished.
Prayer: Lord God, thank You for allowing us to take
refuge in the shelter of Your wings. Thank You for granting us unlimited grace
and everlasting love. In the midst of our problems and worries, we constantly
rely upon Your Presence and Guidance. In Jesus’ Name, we pray. Amen.
John Stuart
traqair@aol.com
Knoxville, Tennessee, USA
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