REFUGE - Psalm 91

PSALM 91:1-16
He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. 2 I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust. 3 Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence.
4 He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler.
5 Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day; 6 Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness; nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday.
7 A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh thee.
8 Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the wicked. 9 Because thou hast made the Lord, which is my refuge, even the most High, thy habitation; 10 There shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling. 11 For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways. 12 They shall bear thee up in their hands, lest thou dash thy foot against a stone. 13 Thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder: the young lion and the dragon shalt thou trample under feet. 14 Because he hath set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high, because he hath known my name. 15 He shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honour him. 16 With long life will I satisfy him, and shew him my salvation.

AS WEIRD AS RAIN

In the Genesis account, we understand that the world was irrigated by a mist that arose from the ground, creating a very heavy dew, and thus, plant life flourished. Rain was something unheard of in the experience of early mankind, according to the Bible.

GEN 2:6
But there went up a mist from the earth, and watered the whole face of the ground.

Take His Word For It!

Consider how GOD honors His Name: for His Name is HOLY Indeed! At the Name of Jesus Christ EVERY KNEE shall bow and EVERY TONGUE confess, that He is LORD! Yet there is something that GOD exalts above even His own Name! His WORD! PSALM 138:2.

Review PSALM 119 and you will see over and over again the Psalmist addresses the WORD of GOD. Here are a couple verses from that Psalm for your consideration: 

"Thy word is true from the beginning: and every one of thy righteous judgments endureth for ever." vs 160 "I rejoice at thy word, as one that findeth great spoil." vs. 162 "I prevented the dawning of the morning, and cried: I hoped in thy word." vs. 147

GOD created the heavens and the earth, and on the third day (yes a 24 hr period!), He created all vegetation: 

The Price of Blood

Gold. Diamonds. Silver. Emeralds. Bronze. Opals. Precious commodities that connote wealth, affluence, extravagance. What makes these materials of value and great worth?

Part of it is scarcity. The less there is of something, the more its worth. That's why various kinds of wood are generally valued less than metals of the finer sort.

Another factor in appraising that which is valuable is demand by way of desirability, attractiveness and or need.
Yet what is THE most valuable commodity there is in all the world? In all the universe?

To answer that, one must consider what is the rarest substance there is, and how much of a demand there is for that substance.
Consider the spiritual values that the BIBLE deals in, most especially where the righteousness of the souls of men are concerned. 

War Objectives

Wars have been fought ever since Cain slew Abel. After that mono e mono, they've become more sophisticated and deadlier, but reasons for such conflicts haven't changed all that much. Wars have been fought for possession of land, for political and religious reasons, for resources.

The church, the ecclesia of the LORD Jesus Christ are also called upon to wage a war, but for entirely different reasons:

Marching Orders

Soldier. Think about the sort of images and ideas that this word brings to your mind. Don't read beyond this point, just think about that word "soldier". What do you think about when you read that word?
Me, I think about discipline, training, sacrifice.
When engaged in battle, soldiers spend relatively less time in the actual engagement compared to the set up, and even all the training beforehand. Let alone the time when they are simply waiting for the engagement to begin.

God's training for us involves much discipline, hardships, instruction, tests and waiting on Him, long before He uses us in ministry and in spiritual warfare.

Ambassadors

American Heritage Dictionary defines "ambassador" as follows: A diplomatic official of the highest rank appointed and accredited as a representative in residence by one government or sovereign to another. Also: A diplomatic official heading his or her country's permanent mission in certain international organizations; an authorized messenger or representative. 

Question: "What does it mean to be an ambassador for Christ?"

Answer: In a letter to the Corinthians, the apostle Paul discusses the ministry of reconciliation, and he uses the term “ambassadors” for Christ: “All this is from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to Himself in Christ, not counting men’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making His appeal through us” (2 Corinthians 5:18-20, emphasis added).*

* to read this article in its entirety, check out GOTQUESTIONS: What does it mean to be an ambassador for Christ?