Psalm 91:1-16
Faith!

He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High
       will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
I will say of Yahweh, "He is my refuge and my fortress;
       my God, in whom I trust."
For he will deliver you from the snare of the fowler,
       and from the deadly pestilence.
He will cover you with his feathers.
       Under his wings you will take refuge.
       His faithfulness is your shield and rampart.
You shall not be afraid of the terror by night,
       nor of the arrow that flies by day;
       nor of the pestilence that walks in darkness,
       nor of the destruction that wastes at noonday.
A thousand may fall at your side,
       and ten thousand at your right hand;
       but it will not come near you.
You will only look with your eyes,
       and see the recompense of the wicked.
Because you have made Yahweh your refuge,
       and the Most High your dwelling place,
no evil shall happen to you,
       neither shall any plague come near your dwelling.
For he will put his angels in charge of you,
       to guard you in all your ways.
They will bear you up in their hands,
       so that you won't dash your foot against a stone.
You will tread on the lion and cobra.
       You will trample the young lion and the serpent underfoot.
"Because he has set his love on me, therefore I will deliver him.
       I will set him on high, because he has known 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.
I will satisfy him with long life,
       and show him my salvation."

World English Bible

For some strange reason, I am recalling the Cowardly Lion's monologue from "The Wizard of Oz", the one that starts:

       "What makes a King out of a slave?
       Courage!
       What makes the flag on the mast to wave?
       Courage!
       What makes the elephant charge his tusk in the misty mist, or the dusky dusk?
       What makes the muskrat guard his musk?
       Courage!"

This wise psalmist would have replaced the focus of this speech with the exclamation, "Faith!" The wonders of protection and blessing described in this psalm are all possible solely because the believer puts all of his trust in God and has chosen to make his home with the Most High. God was the answer to every fear in the psalmist's life: disease, defeat, destruction, fear, loneliness, and death. God's power exceeds every challenge, and God's love draws us intimately close like a hen nestles her brood under her wings.

You probably recognize part of this psalm from Jesus' temptation in the wilderness. Satan quoted it when he tempted Jesus to jump off the temple so everyone could see God's angels catching Him before He dashed His foot against a stone. The life and death of Jesus adds to our understanding of this psalm when we resolve what appear to be contradictions. We might argue that the promise that "no evil shall happen to you" was broken in Judas' betrayal, and that the crucifixion qualifies as "the destruction that wastes at noonday" that was not supposed to come. These very thoughts might have been why Satan chose to quote this psalm to see if the earthly Jesus would view God's promises solely from an earthly perspective and succumb to sin.

Instead, Jesus set an example for us and kept true to God's heavenly perspective. In that sense, we should remember that Jesus explained that He would lay down his life—that no one would take it from Him—in John 10:17-18. As horrible as the experience of the crucifixion, Jesus knew that God would not permit evil to win. As the psalm promised, God would deliver Him and honor Him, and out of this experience would come salvation.

One final observation: one reason the Cowardly Lion longed for courage was because he felt he lacked it.

       "What makes the Hottentot so hot?
       What puts the ape in ape-ricot?
       What have they got that I ain't got?"

His friends responded, "Courage!", and he replied, "You can say that again!"

We already have our heavenly home, we know about God's promises, and we experience God's presence each day. We cannot allow our certainty or familiarity to erode our commitment. It is essential for our spiritual growth that we are as fervent for our faith as the Cowardly Lion was for courage. We find out in the movie that the Cowardly Lion's quest was misguided, but our quest to reach our heavenly home is the highest and most gratifying calling we can have.