Walk Of Life – Day 28, January 2023– Thoughts From The Book Of Psalms

Psalm 121 – The LORD Watches Over You

This second Song of Ascents is commonly recited by believers when they are about to travel to seek his protection. Travelling has become very common now, but in the past, it used to be very tedious and dangerous. Often the travellers were attacked by gang of robbers, so they would travel in caravan or cafila for safety. The psalmist here too would have been travelling towards Jerusalem as a pilgrim or a trader. His journeys must have been challenging and frequent to inspire him to write this song.

• LORD my Helper – The temple mount was a sacred place for all the Jews and had become a traditional gathering place for many festive seasons. Everyone would wait to go to the temple, but the psalmist here looks beyond all this and emphasises that it is God in whom was his trust for it was He who was able to comfort his distressed soul.
• LORD my Watchtower – The psalmist trusted God to hold his feet unwearied on the road and watch without slumber over their repose. An eastern story talks about a poor woman who went to the Sultan for compensation of her lost property. ‘How did you lose it?’ said the monarch. ‘I fell asleep,’ was the reply, ‘and a robber entered my dwelling.’ ‘Why did you fall asleep?’…. ‘I fell asleep because I believed that you were awake.’ The Sultan was so much delighted with the answer of the woman, that he ordered her loss to be made up. If this poor woman could trust her earthly king, how much more you must trust your Heavenly King who does not sleep nor slumber.
• LORD my Protector – Travels by land were lengthy and death was also common due to sunstroke. By experience the psalmist assures that God is a shade at your right hand meaning that God will keep you nourished, strengthened and protected from all harm in your travels by day or night.

Being a believer, I learnt to make praying before eating and before leaving the house as a habit. On one of the trips, the car wheel got stuck in the pothole and the rim was severely damaged. I became anxious as the car started to wobble. With God’s help, we could find a small Maruti workshop where we got the wheel changed to the spare one whose tires were not good. Throughout the journey we as a family prayed and God brought us safely home. Some days after that when I was reading the Bible, God suddenly made me read a part of Deuteronomy 2:7 “He has watched over your journey through this vast wilderness” which left me speechless.

I believe He was teaching me that even though I sometimes pray habitually for the sake of it or because someone asked me to do so, He hears it and starts responding to it. He is not like the other God’s like Baal who when Elijah challenged remained silent and needed awakening (1Kings18:17), but He is a God who does not take even one minute prayer lightly and is faithful in answering. Sometimes you might misunderstand his delays as no answer received. Rest assured, He has started to work upon it,  just that answer will be revealed to you at the right time.  So, let us not take prayer life lightly, as PRAYER brings VICTORY.