Sinister creatures lurk in the shadows around us. The human eye can see a fraction of the predators surrounding it. Murder, abuse, and slavery despoil the world, yet they wield far less power to commit evil than the forces inspiring them.
Mankind yearns to secure its safety by means we can control. Nations establish laws, build prisons, craft weapons of mass destruction. Families build alarm-wired homes with thick gates, carrying guns when venturing into society. These physical precautions assuage humanity’s festering boils with a thin layer of gauze. We slather on painkillers, but fail to cure the underlying disease.
Law enforcement and security systems guard our bodies. The reasonable measures of community protection can extend our time to save what lasts beyond this brief duration of mortal life. The protection of life must reach beyond serving our temporary life and provide an opportunity to address our greater needs. The sickness churning up slaughter and violation doesn’t originate in the flesh, but in the soul.
In physical health threats, some who suffer with profound illness refuse to seek healing. Resistant souls will likewise become walking vessels to spread evil in their community. Vulnerable persons can try to wrap themselves in physical protection, but it will be like washing hands to prevent catching an airborne virus from an airplane seatmate.
There’s only so much one can do to prevent evil’s effects on their mortality. Terrorists take the lives of well-armed men. Cyber-criminals rob people with multiple firewalls. Predators abuse the innocent, even if loved ones have set up every known safeguard. We cannot save ourselves or keep anyone else safe around us.
One hope glimmers for our well-being. We can wrap ourselves in Light. The intangible sound of a lightguard elicits groans from those who believe they can protect themselves. This Light cannot compare to the radiance bouncing across the particles of our atmosphere. The Light of the World created all tangible things, controls the universe, and exists beyond the beginning and end of time. Christ alone wields the power to wrap us in God’s glory. He invites us to dwell inside Him. And He in us. The Lord offers us a way to protect our spirits inside and out, more thorough than any protection devised. When we place ourselves in His Hands, the reconfiguration begins. No longer do we need to live in fear of losing a single, temporary state of existence. No longer must we limit our perception to three dimensions. Our eyes open, and we have an opportunity to live as children growing into the likeness of Truth and Love.
The effectiveness of our protection depends upon the extent to which we avail ourselves of dwelling in Christ and growing into His likeness. Sharing the heart of Christ creates an aversion to participating in evil. His Spirit helps us resist the illness and refuse to carry it into the community. Wellness requires a lifestyle commitment.
Though Christians might stumble through their journey, the Lord remains willing to redirect and shape the character of His children. Love and Truth grind the jutting shards of our brokenness into vessels to share blessings. With the security of Christ’s light wrapped around us, He can guide us to living beyond self-protection.
Only the Light can our position our souls to live forever in a place where evil can never touch us again. He offers wisdom and peace, so we know the next step of our life without the need to remain on our guard.
” Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.” Ephesians 6:10-13″
“Those who look to him are radiant;
their faces are never covered with shame.
This poor man called, and the Lord heard him;
he saved him out of all his troubles.
The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him,
and he delivers them.
Taste and see that the Lord is good;
blessed is the one who takes refuge in him.” Psalm 34 :5-8
