Quiet!

Quiet!

Psalms 119:114 TPT

[114] You’re my place of quiet retreat, and your wraparound presence becomes my shield as I wrap myself in your Word!

It is quite interesting to note that there is no one directly credited with the words of the longest chapter in the Bible, but there are a lot of messages in this psalm. In fact, in some versions, you find the entire chapter of 176 verses is divided into 22 sections of 8 verses each, and there is a reference to the Word of God and its power and effect in each section. That should not be a surprise; after all, we know the identity of the Word of God, and it is His person and power that run through the pages of Scripture, as well as the generations and dispensations that have been established since the foundation of the world. God has placed His Word as the standard for all He is and does, and there is nothing that can be accepted by God, if it runs contrary to that which God is or does. 

We see a few of the dimensions of the Word of God in the verse above. You find the Word as many things: a quiet place, a place of rest and retreat, the manifestation of the presence and power of God, as well as a shield of protection and preservation against whatever may be going on around me. These are just a few of the numerous manifestations of the Word of God, but we focus on the ones that have been laid out here. It has to be clearly noted that the world cannot give you that which only the Word of God can provide and preserve. If I am looking for a place of quiet retreat, the world is not able to get that for me. God is the only one with a quiet place of rest and refreshment, and He invites all who are weary and heavily burdened to come to Him, as they are, and He can guarantee them rest. 

What this tells me is that God does not force Himself on anyone, and He will not go against the exercise of my freewill. The psalmist here had found God for himself, and he could speak of His impact in his life. I note the focus on quiet retreat, and this is a benefit I must take full advantage of. No matter how busy I get, or the applause of men for the things I do, I must be careful to take a step back and retreat for refreshing. Like the writer of this verse, my focus must be to wrap myself in the Word of God. Who or what else can do what the Word of God can do? As I spend time with the Word, He changes me from within and I begin to look more and more like the One I spend time with. True protection and preservation are only available in and through the Word. Do you have Him? Does He know you as His own? God's time of favour is here.