Sundays were usually a comfort. For some some reason being inside the church building made the fears temporarily disappear—but not on this particular Sunday. Our pastor looked unusually serious that day as he made the announcement that one of our most beloved and faithful deacons had been diagnosed with leukemia and had only a few weeks to live. Only the Sunday before this robust-looking deacon in his mid-forties had been in his regular place in the choir — looking as healthy and happy as ever. Now, one Sunday later, the entire congregation was in a state of shock after hearing such an unexpected announcement. Several of the members got upset with the pastor when he said, “Get out all of your silly little get-well cards and start sending them.” But I completely understood the frustration that had initiated the remark. However, little did I know this incident would pave the way to a MESSAGE THAT WAS GOING TO FOREVER BURN IN MY HEART. Surprisingly, I had gone home from church that day feeling very little fear, perhaps because I was numb from the shock of what I had heard. I vividly remember sitting down on the edge of the bed that afternoon and saying out loud, “Lord, is there any way to be protected from all the evils that are coming on the earth?” I was not expecting an answer. I was merely voicing the thought that kept going over and over in my mind. I remember lying across the bed and falling immediately to sleep, only to wake up a short five minutes later. However, in those five minutes I had a very unusual dream. In the dream I was in an open field, asking the same question I had prayed earlier—“Is there any way to be protected from all the things that are coming on the earth?” And in my dream I heard these words: “In your day of trouble call upon Me, and I will answer you!” Suddenly, I knew I had the answer I had so long been searching for. The ecstatic joy I felt was beyond anything I could ever describe. And instantly, to my surprise, there were hundreds of Christians with me in the dream out in that open field, praising and thanking God for the answer. But it wasn’t until the next day when I heard the 91st Psalm referred to on a tape by Shirley Boone that suddenly—I knew in my heart that whatever was in that psalm was God’s answer to my question. I nearly tore up my Bible in my haste to see what it said. And there it was in verse 15—the exact statement God had spoken to me in my dream. I could hardly believe my eyes! I believe that you who read Psalm 91 are among the many Christians who were pictured with me in that open field, who will, through the Message in this book, get your answer to the question, “Can a Christian be protected through these turbulent times?” Since the early 1970s, I have had many opportunities to share this message. I believe God has commissioned me to share God’s Covenant of Protection. Peggy Joyce Ruth From Psalm 91 Psalm 91 Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.” Surely he will save you from the fowler’s snare and from the deadly pestilence. He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart. You will not fear the terror of night, nor the arrow that flies by day, nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness, nor the plague that destroys at midday. A thousand may fall at your side, ten thousand at your right hand, but it will not come near you. You will only observe with your eyes and see the punishment of the wicked. If you say, “The Lord is my refuge,” and you make the Most High your dwelling, no harm will overtake you, no disaster will come near your tent. For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways; they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone. You will tread on the lion and the cobra; you will trample the great lion and the serpent. “Because he loves me,” says the Lord, “I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name. He will call on me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him. With long life I will satisfy him and show him my salvation.” Read about how God wants to protect us from every evil known to man.
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