Maintenance Required
‘……. You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You.’
Isaiah 26:3
After turning the key in the ignition, the first thing that popped right into the ball of my eyes was an unusual image on the dashboard of the car. Trying to search my brain for any known information took me in a large spiral. I had no idea what it meant, or even if it should be there. I called my husband for advice but could not clearly explain the description of the image. I took a quick snapshot and sent it to his phone. Time was passing by quickly, and I was not sure if it was safe to drive with the warning message. My husband took a quick look at the image and explained that maintenance is required. You see, I have been getting notices from the maker of the car to schedule an appointment but kept putting the notices aside for one reason or another. Some valid and others not. I knew that the car was taken to dealer to replace the oil and to rotate the tires six months prior to this warning. What I was unaware of is that they don't normally check everything all at once if it is not necessary. The car was now speaking to me regarding the relevant care that it needed. One of my favorite songs popped into my head from Psalm 121: the Lord is thy keeper. This brought memories of me bellowing the words as I led out my youth choir with the verses of the song. At the end of our conversation and research, it was concluded that I was able to drive the car, but that it needed professional attention sooner rather than later, which we sought. It is believed that the Psalmist wrote this passage of scripture to express the need to trust in God's care and protection as the Jewish pilgrims traveled the long, lonely, and dangerous road to Jerusalem. It was written as a message to remind everyone that God is keeping them. The Hebrew word for keeper... Shamar is defined as protect, guard, or keep. In the context of Psalm 121, it highlights the role of God as a constant guardian. This gives us a sense of security and trust in God's protection. Unlike the car that had to remind me that it needed maintenance, our Heavenly Father knows what we need when we need it. He constantly prompts us to pray, to study, to worship, and to serve as well as when to be still.
Life can feel treacherous as we travel this journey to the New Jerusalem as temptations dance in front of our eyes, desperation and anxiety ambush us, fear of the unknown paralyzes us, trials weigh us and our loved ones down and besetting sins linger. But when we are terrified of the maintenance required notice, we can be reminded of our Keeper, our Shamar. God is able to keep us as there is nothing that He can not do. He made all things, sustains all things, rules all things, and He keeps him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on Him, because he trusts in Him. We can put our eager expectations of being maintained and kept in God's care and be confident that He who started a good work will fulfill it to completion. I would like to remind us that God delights in our daily maintenance, and that is why His grace is new every morning and He who keeps us will not slumber nor sleep. Where in your life is the maintenance notice showing up? Is it the nameless prayer request, the faceless head of mental health challenges, the weakness of a broken family or is it uncontrollable circumstances. Whatever it is, however, hard the journey feels, just remember how powerful our God is - the power that we can see everywhere, the power that God is keeping for us and the power that He has to keep us.
TODAY'S PRAYER:
Our Heavenly Father, thank you for keeping us and the unique care you extend to each of us. Thank you for being interested in even the tiniest details of our lives. Thank you for the maintenance that you perform on us daily. Please convict our hearts of the warnings and the reminders you give us daily to study, pray, serve, and build a closer relationship with you. Please keep us in perfect peace as we keep our minds stayed on you. Bless and keep us as we continue to give you honor, glory, and adoration in no other name but the name of Jesus. Amen.
REFLECTION:
What warning sign is showing up in your life? Will you choose today to give it to God who has the power to fix everything and to keep you?