His Name Is a Strong Tower
"The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous run into it and are safe." (Proverbs 18:10 NRS)
I got an invitation the other day to be part of an online writers' group. It was the kindest and loveliest invitation to a group made up of the kindest and loveliest people, but I hesitated to accept because I don't consider myself a "real" writer. (Did you hear that? It was the sound of my mother harrumphing in indignation. Thanks, mama.) I tell this part of my story NOT to get us bogged down in what a "real" writer (or a "real" anything else) is or isn't but to illustrate (I truly hope) a much more important point: sometimes, we hesitate to accept God's invitation because we don't think we qualify for the club.
Take today's verse, for example: when I read in Proverbs 18:10 that "the righteous" run to the strong tower that is God's name, I'm tempted to think that tower isn't for me. If this verse said "the messed-up" run to the tower or the "ye of little faith" run to it or "the chronically selfish" run to it, I'd be high-tailing it on up. To say, "Yes, I'm one of the righteous," though, feels fraudulent.
But here's the error in my thinking—which I share in case it might be the error in yours, too: I'm deciding if I'm one of the people who are supposed to be running to the name of the Lord based on my own righteousness...which I have no trouble whatsoever agreeing is like "filthy rags," as Isaiah 64:6 says. That's faulty thinking, though, because the righteousness that qualifies me and you and any of us for admittance into the tower of God doesn't originate with us; it's born through faith in the Righteous One, Jesus.
Look at just a few of the people who found safety in the tower of God after their rags were replaced by the royal robe of Jesus' righteousness:
*A woman "living in sin" (John 4).
*An adulterous woman (John 8).
*A thief (Luke 23).
*A persecutor of believers (Acts 9).
Beloved, God is inviting you to be part of His group. How I hope you've accepted His invitation...and then how I hope you'll run to the saving protection of His tower with the robe of His righteousness flying out behind you like a banner.
Oh God, Your name is a strong tower. Help me to make it known.
*A persecutor of believers (Acts 9).
Beloved, God is inviting you to be part of His group. How I hope you've accepted His invitation...and then how I hope you'll run to the saving protection of His tower with the robe of His righteousness flying out behind you like a banner.
Oh God, Your name is a strong tower. Help me to make it known.
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I'd love to hear from you! Feel free to tell me what you really think. Years ago, I explained to my then-two-year-old that my appointment with a counselor was "sort of like going to a doctor who will help me be a better mommy." Without blinking, she replied, "You'd better go every day." All of which is just to say I've spent some time in the school of brutal honesty!