Security

Security

I have set the Lord always before me. Because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken. Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices; my body also will rest secure.

Psalm 16:8-9, NIV

What mom doesn’t experience times of insecurity or uncertainty? Now in my fifties, I still have occasional days when I feel insecure. But in my early adult years, I had more of those days, and I sometimes thought I was one of very few moms who questioned her worth. Now that I’m older, I know differently. Every mom who is honest with herself admits that she has some of those days. In order to be truly secure, we’re wise to keep these two truths from God’s Word in balance constantly:

1. It was the awfulness of our personal sin that made the death of Christ necessary.
2. God loved us so much that he sent his Son to die for us.

When we concentrate on one and not the other, we get out of balance—we either get too proud or too insecure.

Security begins when we say, like the psalmist in the verses above, “I keep the Lord (not self) always before me.” Thinking too much about ourselves can get us into trouble. If we think too highly of ourselves, we begin feeling smug and proud; if we belittle ourselves, we begin feeling discouraged. Thoughts of what God has done for us, however, give us a healthy perspective. Gladys Hunt writes, “God has redeemed us; we can lift up our heads and shout praises. God’s love is an in-spite-of kind of love—the kind of love that is safe, that lets us dump our load honestly before him, assured of his constancy.”^a

Now that’s a great start toward security!

God,

Thank you that we don’t find our sense of security by looking inward at ourselves, but that we start by looking up to you. Thanks that you cared for us so much that you died for us and wanted us to be your friends forever. You are “God with us.” Amen.