Divine Protection

The Lord has promised that He will fight our battles for us. He will protect us from harm, that not one hair of our head be lost. (2 Chronicles 20: 15; Isaiah 49: 25; 52: 12; Luke 21: 15-18; Doc. & Cov. 98: 37; 105: 14)

Does this promise mean we will never experience difficulty, even great suffering through painful hardship?

Sometimes our expectations of divine protection are unreasonably naive—that nothing bad should ever happen to us.

Jesus never taught that following Him would eliminate misfortune from our life of discipleship. In fact, He assures us of the opposite, together with a comforting call to remember Him:

"These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world."

John 16: 33, emphasis added

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God has given us tools to use for our protection. But we must use them. And using them doesn't change what happens out there, away from our small zones of influence.

• In Lehi's vision of the tree and the path (1 Nephi 8), did those holding onto the rod of iron gain the ability to see through the mists of darkness? No, they were just as blind as those who wandered away from the straight, safe path.

• A shield blocks and quenches darts and arrows; it doesn't keep them from flying at us.

  
  

• Does putting on a sweater make the room any warmer?

• Does an umbrella stop the rain from falling?

  
  

Living righteously doesn't prevent hardships from coming. It redirects them, and shapes them into something that strengthens.

Rather than overcoming you, these challenges then work together for your good as you learn to overcome the world.

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Seek, and Ye Shall Find

When we so choose, we can see God's hand moving, directing, and shaping our life. The unbelieving see by a different light, and ascribe events to an expected "natural" way of things, without seeing higher or holier forces at play.

During a war recorded in the Book of Mormon, we read of the victorious, religious Nephites being protected by God.

Their enemies, the Lamanites, criticized the Nephites' worship and recognition of God as the source of their protection. Their leader said that there was nothing more supernatural in their success than the physical advantage of wearing armor in combat. (Alma 44: 9)

The truth, of course, is that God indeed protected the Nephites in battle. Part of His protection came by inspiring them with the wisdom to make and wear armor.

Whether by some mysterious unknown agency acting "behind the scenes," or by some plainly manifest "natural" consequence of right living, God is always the One providing protection to those who receive Him as their guide.

He will provide the same kind of protection to you as you exercise your faith in Him by doing the best you can with what He has taught you.

He protected the Nephites, by way of their armor. He will protect you, by way of the blessings of peace and righteousness that come from obedience to His commandments.

See also:

Ephesians 6: 10-18

Matthew 10: 28

Luke 12: 4

Job 19: 26

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Veils of Unbelief, by the Author

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Keep Your Eyes On the Prize, by the Author

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