Daily devotional · January 31
The Lord Who Keeps You
“I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come? My help comes from the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth. He will not allow your foot to slip; your Protector will not slumber. Behold, the Protector of Israel will neither slumber nor sleep. The LORD is your keeper; the LORD is the shade on your right hand. The sun will not strike you by day, nor the moon by night. The LORD will guard you from all evil; He will preserve your soul. The LORD will watch over your coming and going, both now and forevermore.”
This is one of the Songs of Ascents, sung by pilgrims climbing toward Jerusalem. The hills around them could hide bandits and shrines to false gods, so the singer asks where help will come from and answers: from the Lord, maker of heaven and earth. The psalm then repeats the word keep again and again. He will not let your foot slip, and He who watches over you will not slumber or sleep. The Lord is your shade at your right hand. He watches over your coming and going, both now and forevermore. At the end of a long month, that is a comfort worth resting on. You do not have to guard everything, because Someone who never sleeps is already on watch. Tonight, before you go to bed, speak each worry to God aloud by name and then say: You keep watch, so I can sleep.
Prayer
Lord, You watch over me and never sleep. I rest tonight in Your keeping. Amen.