Diversified Assets

“In peace I will both lie down and sleep; for you alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety.” (Psalm 4:8)

When it comes to personal security, just like a good investment portfolio, we like to diversify our assets. We build layers of fail-safes around our souls: Savings for a rainy day, health, physical fitness, making ourselves indispensable at work, a good reputation, networks of friends, keeping the home fires burning, and the list just goes on. If one fails, we always want another to fall back on. In so far as these things go, of course, there is nothing wrong with any of this. We should be good stewards of our lives, our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit--they matter to God, and we should obey the lawful orders of our doctors and government officials. “Trust in God and keep your powder dry” was the motto of our fathers, and it was a good one. Healthy diets, due diligence, and personal responsibility all lie at the heart of a life lived for the honor of God. But none of these things are the real secret of our success.

In reality, we have but one source of security: The LORD. Everything hangs on Him. If He is for us, nothing can stand against us. But when He stands contrary, nothing can work to our favor. In our Psalm this morning, David acknowledges this. Evidently, times are tight in the camp. Grumbling voices harangue from the shadow, “Many are saying, “Who will show us any good?” (Psalm 4:6). Food is scarce and wine, well that’s a long distant memory (Psa 4:7). David responds with the reflex of a healthy soul: “Lift up the light of your countenance upon us, O LORD!” Let the wicked enjoy their bounty when they can get it, but as for me and my house, my chief desire and delight is to see the smiling face of my God. David finds more joy in God than the wicked do in plenty (Psa 4:7), and a friend, to boot, who sticks closer than a brother. 

The next morning, David gets up and trudges off to the kitchen to make some coffee. He’s alive, that much is sure. But the reason he is alive, the only reason death did not swallow him up last night while he lay upon his bed, was the overarching providence of God. The Lord alone made Him to dwell in safety. 

Reflect on this as you make your way through the next couple of weeks. I think times are set to get pretty tight in America. Friends of ours will get the Coronavirus. People we know may well be deathly ill in the hospital. Some may not pull through. We might be one of them. Time will tell. But remember this: Some trust in statistics, the buffer of youth, the skill and friendship of medical contacts,  or the odds stacked for (or against them). We cannot put our trust in these things without forsaking our refuge in God.

So Christian, let your trust be in the LORD. And every morning when your feet hit the floor, let your first thoughts be, “In peace, I lay down and slept. I awoke, for you alone, O Lord, make to dwell in safety.” God is the only reason I made it through the night alive. His faithfulness is a shield about me. Without His say so, none can touch me. Even when this is the only hope of security you have, it really is the only one you ever need.