God Takes No Vacations
Psalm 121
A song of ascents.
I lift up my eyes to the mountains—
where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord,
the Maker of heaven and earth.He will not let your foot slip—
he who watches over you will not slumber;
indeed, he who watches over Israel
will neither slumber nor sleep.The Lord watches over you—
the Lord is your shade at your right hand;
the sun will not harm you by day,
nor the moon by night.The Lord will keep you from all harm—
he will watch over your life;
the Lord will watch over your coming and going
both now and forevermore.
My wife, my son, and I just returned from our vacation this week. We had a great time seeing family in Missouri, Iowa, and Wisconsin, and missing the 100 degree days in Texas. But it’s hard to be away, too, knowing life goes on for everyone here in DFW, both in good ways and bad, and not being present.
What if God took a vacation? Talk about an essential worker. He truly has the one job no one else can do. Being God. Who else would watch over you as you go to work or school? Who else would keep you safe while you sleep? Who else would watch over your whole life?
And yet, maybe it seems like God does go on vacation. Maybe sometimes it even feels like God's retired. After all, has the Lord kept you from all harm? Has he always kept your foot from slipping? Or have you had to fill God's shoes because it seems like he’s taking a break?
My one-year-old Nicholas loves shoes. He’ll find our shoes sitting by the door and try to put them on his feet. But they don’t fit. They’re way too big. Likewise, when we trying to walk around in God's shoes, we find ourselves stumbling and tripping, unable to even come close to doing his job for him. His shoes are too big to fill.
Our Father finds us flat on our faces, his shoes dangling from our feet. He picks us up, wipes our runny noses, and says, “Now, what did you do? Don’t you see you can’t do protect and provide for yourself on your own?” But we reply, “I thought you were gone. I thought I had to do it myself.”
And our Father says, “No, my child. He who watches over you will not slumber. Indeed, he who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.” God takes no vacations. He doesn’t step out of the room for a even moment. He doesn’t even shut his eyes in his easy chair. When harm comes your way, he keeps it from being a disaster. When disaster comes your way, he keeps it from killing you. If he even allows you to die, he gives you eternal life in through his Son Jesus Christ. He is always there. Always watching. Always helping.