³ He will not allow your foot to be moved;
He who keeps you will not slumber.
⁴ Behold, He who keeps Israel
Shall neither slumber nor sleep.

⁵ The Lord is your keeper;
The Lord is your shade at your right hand.
⁶ The sun shall not strike you by day,
Nor the moon by night.

⁷ The Lord shall preserve you from all evil;
He shall preserve your soul.
⁸ The Lord shall preserve your going out and your coming in
From this time forth, and even forevermore.

My assignment was to keep my eyes on Him and He would lead and protect me.

Every day I asked, “Abba, do I take the bus today or walk to the volunteer office?”  And every day, He would lead me. Buses and restaurants were blown up while I was there, many people were hurt or killed, but I remained safe.

Holy Spirit is leading me to write a series of blogs about who He is so we can keep our focus on Him and not our circumstances.  I can’t guarantee a weekly rendering because Holy Spirit is my editor.  And some of Yeshua’s job descriptions will require more than one post.  But I believe making Him our focus will build our faith, our trust, and will see us through, just as He’s promised.

The number nineteen is an interesting number. First he number ten is Yod. Hebrew letters have a numerical value, a name, a picture, and a meaning. Wherever we see the number ten it is the outcome or completion of something.  And the picture for Yod is like a hand, hovering in the air .  It depicts the right hand of God’s power, His covering.

Second, nine in Hebrew has the numerical value of the letter Tet.  Number nine is the number for judgment. It is also the number for new beginning in the Spirit.

The letter for Tet looks like this and some describe it like a snake in a basket.  Tet describes a time of temptation and the opportunity to make a choice.  Are we going to look and listen to the snake in the basket and follow his lead or are we going to look and listen to God and follow Him?

Tet also means to twist or surround.  When we listen to the enemy of temptation and deception, he twists around us like a python until we are unable to see or think. He confuses and overwhelms us.  But if we keep our eyes on Yeshua, Psalm 32:7 says, “You are my hiding place; You shall preserve me from trouble; You shall surround me with songs of deliverance. Selah

So, nineteen describes a time of temptation and deception when we will be given a choice.  If we look to God, He will surround us and protect us.  He will bring us through the year with the right hand of His power with a new beginning in the Spirit.  If we choose to focus on the negative and listen to the enemy, our year will not be pleasant.

While God doesn’t promise a trouble-free life, He does promise to be with us.  The great I AM, who created all and sustains all is with us and He will see us through.

Psalm 34:4-5(God’s Word translation)

I went to the Lord for help.
    He answered me and rescued me from all my fears.
All who look to Him will be radiant.
    Their faces will never be covered with shame.

There is no other counselor, teacher, or guide like our God. I love these quotes from Isaiah 40.

In Isaiah 40:25 God asks this question: “To whom then will you liken Me, or to whom shall I be equal?” says the Holy One.

Then He answers:  Isaiah 40:26

Lift up your eyes on high, And see who has created these things, Who brings out their host by number; He calls them all by name, By the greatness of His might And the strength of His power; Not one is missing. (NKJV)

I also love these other translations:

“So—who is like me? Who holds a candle to me?” says The Holy. Look at the night skies: Who do you think made all this? Who marches this army of stars out each night, counts them off, calls each by name —so magnificent! so powerful!— and never overlooks a single one?  (Message)

Look up into the heavens! Who created all these stars? As a shepherd leads his sheep, calling each by its pet name, and counts them to see that none are lost or strayed, so God does with stars and planets!  (TLB)

And thus in 2019, we will keep our eyes on Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith for He is always leading us in triumph.

Have a blessed new year celebration,  See you in 2019.