9 If you make the Most High your dwelling—
even the LORD, who is my refuge-

10 then no harm will befall you,
no disaster will come near your tent.

11 For he will command his angels concerning you
to guard you in all your ways;

12 they will lift you up in their hands,
so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.

***********************

15 He will call upon me, and I will answer him;
I will be with him in trouble,
I will deliver him and honor him.

16 With long life will I satisfy him
and show him my salvation."

Wow. No harm will befall me...no disaster will come near my "tent." That must mean that any disappointments, pain, stresses in my life are not really "harm," and certainly not "disaster." Whatever He allows in my life can't be classified as harm because, no matter how unpleasant it may seem in the short run, He has promised to use it for my ultimate good.

But the promise, signified by the "if," is conditional. What is the condition? That I make the Most High my dwelling. Not that I be perfect, not that I do everything right, but that I dwell in Him. Tonight I am pondering once again what it means for me to dwell in Him...

And on a lighter note, I've smiled at the phrase, "...so that you will not strike your foot against a stone." I'm in the process, as you know, of getting used to this shoe insert that is equalizing my leg length. I'm unsteady enough already, and this has made me a little more tentative as I adjust to the slightly different gait. Well, at the foot of my bed lie two deep, thick sheepskins. I LOVE walking across them, especially in cool weather, and wiggling my toes all the way to the bottom of the wool. But...they're three inches thick and when I'm not paying close attention, I have been known to trip over them. So this afternoon The Papa rolled them up tightly and put them high up in the closet until I'm a bit steadier. I was sad to see them go, but I did laugh inside thinking that it doesn't even take a stone for me to "strike my foot" and come crashing down! I really need those angels guarding me!

Finally, I am blessed to have God's promise that He will be with me in trouble...and that He will satisfy me with a long life. You know, there have been times in history when living to the ripe old age of 52 would have been amazing. I've already had a long, satisfying life. Every year I live from here simply heaps blessing on blessing. He has shown me His salvation, and one day I will see its culmination, see Him in all His glory and live the true long and satisfying life for which He prepares me in this one.

Oh LORD, you are my refuge!

(Oh, and to my friend who thought to share her devotions with me, thank you ever so much.)