Your love is my salvation

Psalm 31:15-16  Common English Bible (CEB) 

15  My future is in your hands.
    Don’t hand me over to my enemies,
    to all who are out to get me!

16  Shine your face on your servant;
    save me by your faithful love!

I sit to write today’s journal post right after having finished writing, recording, and uploading the message for tomorrow’s worship service.  Oddly enough, that message was about trusting God.  Or perhaps not so oddly, as this psalm is the reading for the entire week and is supposed to go well with all the other readings.  

My future is in your hands.   

We are perhaps more aware of this than usual right now.  The pandemic is not slowing down.  The number of reported confirmed cases is climbing.  The death rate is climbing. There is no treatment although they are testing some medications.  All we can do right now is try our best to protect ourselves and our loved ones by following the guidelines we have been given by respected epidemiologists, and trust in God.  

Don’t hand me over to my enemies, to all who are out to get me!  

Enemy Number One right now is fear.  Fear of dying. Fear of catching the virus and recovering, but having major medical issues afterwards.  Fear of losing someone we love.  Fear of losing everything because our job is gone.  Fear that there will never be a treatment or a vaccine, or if there is it will come too late for us.  The only cure for all of these fears is trust in God, knowing that our future is in God’s hands.  

Shine your face on your servant;  save me by your faithful love!

We know God loves us, but we may not always feel that love.  God’s love always shines upon us like the sun, but sometimes it may feel like the sun is behind the clouds or on the other side of the earth.  When those days come it may take a short time to make my way through whatever it is in order to feel the warmth of God’s love again, but I know that God’s unfailing love is my salvation.  Feeling that love brings knowledge that my future is in God’s hands, that I am protected from my enemies.  

Merciful God, we trust you with our lives.  We know that you will take away our fears if we only let ourselves feel the outpouring of your steadfast love.  Amen.