January 26, 2026

One day I read a devotion that I felt was a word for me. A repeat word, in fact, as the Lord has spoken to me before: the need to slow down and pause. In the physical sense that is true, as Al is always telling me to slow down when I eat and digest my food. It is also a word for me spiritually, as I need to pause and think through the scriptures I have just read. I don’t have to keep reading, but just sit with even a small portion of scripture and let it sink into me. Quality is better than quantity. That’s why we often read in Psalms the word “Selah,” for it means to pause and consider what we are reading, to think on it and apply it.

I went on to read my Psalm for the day. It happened to be Psalm 91 that I had memorized many years ago when going through a hard time in the church. But now it spoke to me in a new way as I read it from several different translations. The Message translation started out with, “You who sit down in the High God’s presence, spend the night in Shaddai’s shadow, Say this: ’God, you’re my refuge. I trust in you and I’m safe!’…fear nothing…’If you’ll hold on to me for dear life’, says God, ‘I’ll get you out of any trouble. I’ll give you the best of care if you’ll only get to know and trust me. Call me and I’ll answer; be at your side in bad times. I’ll rescue you…” That is not the translation I memorized but it spoke to me in a special way, as that day I was having tooth trouble and my gold crown was hurting. Not good! I knew I had to make a call later to the dentist, and I hung on to the promise that the Lord would take me out of my trouble and give me the best of care.