Psalms 139:5 AMP “You have enclosed me behind and before, And [You have] placed Your hand upon me.“

Psalms 139:5 NIV “You hem me in behind and before, and you lay your hand upon me.”

Hemmed in, enclosed, these words feel like restriction, something to escape from not to rest in and enjoy. But, it is a very vivid description of God’s all-encompassing presence.

Much more than Omnipresence – God everywhere, it’s OmniNear, God with us, you and I.

It’s all well and good when everything is fine, when we feel like we deserve to be there.

Yet, paradoxically, when internal storms torpedo our life boat, and external forces, like icebergs and gale force winds, tear apart our ship — our instinct is not to stay within the enclosure of God’s abiding presence, our instinct is to run, to flail, to try to right the ship with our hands.

The enclosure of God’s presence, the shadow of the Almighty becomes our least favourite place at the junctures when it should be our only option.

Likely because it requires nothing of us, except submission and surrender. To trust that the noisome pestilence, rather than evidence of abandonment, is a guarantee of His nearness because He is close to the broken hearted.

So like David, in this chapter we run from pillar to post, hiding in darkness. Hoping to shake off His presence because we’re unworthy, or to somehow make ourselves “useful” so we can deserve His presence.

The good news is we cannot outrun His presence, the depth of our despair does not put Him off. Wherever we run, it is all still within His encompassing presence, His mighty loving hands, afterall, He holds the whole world in His hands.

Stay hemmed in, enclosed in His love!