As you can imagine, this had led to a lot of conversations in our home, much thought and prayer. I am so grateful that Diane is with me, and my heart goes out to you if you are alone through this crisis. We know that we are not alone, and that God is with us, but it's so hard to be without that flesh and blood embrace that comforts when things get tough.
For the Christian, however, shielding is nothing new. Right back in the Genesis God spoke to the first man of faith, and told him; ‘Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your very great reward.’ He was going to need that protective shield a lot in the trials that lay ahead of him. In Psalm 3:3 'But you, Lord, are a shield around me, my glory, the One who lifts my head high'. And in Psalm 18:30 'he shields all who take refuge in him'.
Now that doesn't mean that those who trust in God will be immune to the problems of life. My experience has revealed the emptiness of that idea, but it does mean that we have a higher power who loves us and is watching out for us. We have someone to turn to in the night when we are afraid. There is one who loves us and waits up with us, listening to our every cry in distress.
In Ephesians 6 St Paul speaks about lifting up the shield of faith with which we will be able to extinguish all the fiery darts of the evil one. And in this period of shielding I am going to have to take that advice on board. Choosing faith and not fear is a big one. Each day, and especially at night, we need to be using that shield of faith. There are plenty of fiery arrows around at the moment, some of them invisible to the naked eye, so our shield of faith is a vital piece of lockdown kit.
