The Power of Commitment
Speaking words out loud aligns the stars.
Yesterday, I started writing about the soldier’s psalm, Psalms 91. This is to combat fear. We looked at verse one last time and today we will add verse two.
I will say to the LORD, “My refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.”
Psalms 91:2 (ESV)
If you read the entire psalm, just 16 verses, you will see that the second verse stands out. It is the only one written in the first person. All the others are explanations of what God will do for the one who trusts him. This makes verse two a key to understanding he entire psalm. It is the psalmist’s declaration of faith.
He is making his declaration out loud to you and me. He declares God is his refuge where he goes for security. God is also his fortress, where he goes for protection. And typical to this Hebrew poetic style he is embellishing a single idea with two words that are similar but not completely. A fortress can be a refuge and a refuge can be a fortress but they actually speak of different needs of our hearts. We need a place to rest and recover and we need a place where we can recruit warriors to fight along side us as well as for us. We need our own space, but we also need connections to comrades recruited to the same mission.
Now God can be both his refuge and fortress by himself alone, but often he connects us with others who will to walk along side for mutual benefit. We need God in both ways — first for his strength and protection alone, and also for those he will provide us to walk alongside as support.
Finally , there is power in speaking and declaring one’s faith and loyalty out loud. It is a way to draw a line in the sand.
So everyone who acknowledges me before men, I also will acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven, but whoever denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven.
Matthew 10:32-33 (ESV)
