For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways. On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone. You will tread on the lion and the adder; the young lion and the serpent you will trample underfoot.
Psalm 91:11–13, ESV
Satan uses the words of this Psalm in an attempt to tempt Jesus to sin while in the desert. Jesus responds with the words, “You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.” Often we hear declarations made about how if we are faithful in one way that God will bring blessings in another. Usually, this is utilized when the person declaring it is asking for a gift, but it may also apply to prayers and the like. The promises of God are often twisted to cause one to expect things from God like a word problem of if…then. This is not how our relationship with God works and sets many up for a negative relationship with God as people try to do the right things as prescribed, and things don’t go along the way that was set forth in the mind of the believer. God’s protections are there for us, and I have witnessed, heard accounts of, and experienced miraculous things that have come through prayer and proclamation of the Word of God. We do not, however, hold God ransom through our prayers or actions. We are meant to stand firm in the Word regardless of what is going on in our lives with the full understanding of the promises that are to come and have been fulfilled in eternity. We should not test God with snakes or jump from high points as a practice of faith, but that does not mean that in such an event, God would not provide protection for us. God’s protection is not given at the snap of our fingers or the clap of our hands, but at His will and in His way, we may find that He will guard us from physical harm, but He will always guard us from the eternal threat given us by the deceiver.
Let us pray. I thank you, my heavenly Father, through Jesus Christ, your dear Son, that you have kept me this night from all harm and danger, and I ask you to protect me this day also from sin and every evil, that in all I do today, I may please you. For into your hands, I commend myself, my body and soul, and all that is mine. Let your holy angel watch over me, that the wicked foe have no power over me. Amen.