"The Lord God is a sun and shield:the Lord will give grace and glory:no good thing will He withhold from them that walk uprightly. O Lord of hosts, blessed is the man that trusteth in Thee"-Ps. 84:11,12.

As I pondered over these wonderful verses, I questioned myself:What do they mean to me? And I tried to analyze them.

"The Lord God is a Sun and Shield." The sun not only makes the flowers grow, it also nourishes and strengthens them. But it can have no such effect on flowers that are dead. If I am redeemed with the precious blood of Jesus, and know that He suffered on Calvary's cross for me, I have life in Christ Jesus. It is His free gift (John 10:28). And having life I can say of this Sun:"The Lord is the strength of my life." But He is not only this:He is the Nourisher of my life; the Sustainer of my life; the Light of my life, and He is my daily food. But if I have never been born again, I will be like the flowers that are dead, upon which the sun has no life-giving effect. It only withers them the more.

Then, after this great gift, God has others for us as we go along our way. We need grace, and "He will give grace and glory"-grace to bear all things, grace to endure all things, grace to be patient to all, grace to say, "Thy will be done," grace to be loving to those that are unlovable, grace to be bright and cheerful when the heart is sad, and grace sufficient to meet all my need. "Grace begun will end in glory." This was God's eternal purpose for us:"Whom He justified He also glorified" (Rom. 8:30). So our Lord said, "The glory which Thou gavest Me, I have given them, that they may be one, as We are One" (John 17:22). That gift of glory is ours now, though its fulness is in the future.

And that is not all-"No good thing will He withhold from them that walk uprightly." If He denies us anything, we may be sure it would not be good for us to have it; but He desires us to make known our requests to Him, for "the prayer of the upright is His delight" (Prov. 15:8).

What more do we want? "He is a Sun and Shield." A Sun to strengthen, a Shield to protect me from danger and fear. "He will give grace and glory," both for present need and the future with Himself, and, "No good thing will He withhold." So we can well exclaim with the psalmist:"O Lord of Hosts, blessed is the man that trusteth in Thee." L. A. Byford