Preserved From Danger

Psalm 140:1-13
From September 19, 2005

A friend of mine remarked that something often goes haywire in many teenage brains. It seems to be fully functioning all their life, developing, inquiring, evaluating, and gaining knowledge throughout their early years. Once they reach teenagerhood, “It’s like they’ve taken ‘stupid pills’ and the brain shuts down for about six years or more. Usually, by the time they reach their 20s and begin to get out on their own, the effects wear off and Mom and Dad suddenly become smarter.”

As the father of one on the cusp of crossing the teen threshold next year, I hardly take solace in that forecast. So, I try to accentuate those times when my twelveteen-year-old does the best, wisest, and most wonderful things.

“Code Red! Code Red! This is not a drill!” The concerned and urgent voice announced the signal over the public address system to inform everyone that lockdown procedures were in effect immediately. The voice was that of the principal. There was an unauthorized individual in the building recently at my daughter’s school.

A man who had escaped police custody tried to elude recapture by ducking in the front door of the schoool. He ran down vacated hallways and emerged from the back of the building before being captured a few blocks away without incident.

During the ordeal, The Ever Precocious Daughter sat smushed against a classroom wall, a little anxious like everyone else. Then, she said, “I began to silently pray and I remembered a couple Bible verses that I kept saying over and over. After a couple minutes, I felt sure that nothing bad would happen. I turned to Ashleigh and said, ‘Everything is going to be OK.’”

That would be the perfect textbook response. Note verses one and four from Psalm 140, from the Old Testament portion of the Textbook:

“Deliver me, O LORD, from evil men; preserve me from violent men…Keep me, O LORD, from the hands of the wicked; preserve me from violent men who have purposed to make my steps stumble.”

The psalmist David’s response to an imminent potential attack was to pray. So was The Daughter’s. (“Hooray for ‘smart pills,’” said the dad, who hopes the prescription renews frequently.) Once the danger had passed, the kids expressed how nervous they had been, juxtaposed to The Daughter who told them her initial fear passed after she had prayed. Who says prayer has no place in public schools?

Threats to our safety may come as physical assaults or the meddling of Senate Judiciary Committee members. By praying for God’s protection over us, our loved ones, and our nation, we can latch onto verse 13:

“Surely the righteous shall give thanks to Your name; the upright shall dwell in your presence.