With Safety, You Ring Me Around

"The world is not safe from sin and evil - even the body is not safe from harm. But within the cloistered heart there is refuge. The Lord is with me; I will not be afraid. In the cloister I am always safe." (from cloistered heart book)

Someone asked recently if I could share some of my favorite "pieces of grillwork." I am delighted to begin doing so, particularly as we continue looking at the refuge we have in Christ.

In addition to scripture verses, I'm also mixing in one or two appropriate quotes from a few saints. After all, if anyone ever found the "view through the grille," it was they.

"The Name of the Lord is a strong tower; the just man runs to it and is safe.”  (Proverbs 18:10) 

"You are my shelter; from distress you keep me.  With safety, You ring me around." (Psalm 32:7) 

"O Jesus, I am locking myself in Your most merciful heart as in a fortress, impregnable against the missiles of my enemies.” (St. Faustina Kowalska, Diary, #1535)

"Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are Mine.  When you pass through the water, I will be with you; in the waters you shall not drown.  When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned; the flames shall not consume you."  (Isaiah 43:1-2)

"Happy is the soul established in God ... The winds of the storm are powerless to shake her.” (St. Jane deChantal)

"We know that God makes all things work together for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his decree." (Romans 8:28) 

"I consider the sufferings of the present to be as nothing compared with the glory to be revealed in us." (Romans 8:18) 

"Eye has not seen, ear has not heard, nor has it so much as dawned on man what God has prepared for those who love him." (1 Corinthians 2:9)

"The present burden of our trial is light enough, and earns for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison. We do not fix our gaze on what is seen but on what is unseen. What is seen its transitory; what is unseen lasts forever." (1 Corinthians 4:17-18)

"I am sure of this much: that He who has begun the good work in you will carry it through to completion, right up to the day of Christ Jesus." (Philippians 1:6)

"In Him who is the source of my strength I have strength for everything."  (Philippians 4:13)

"There is cause for rejoicing here.  You may for a time have to suffer the distress of many trials; but this is so that your faith, which is more precious than the passing splendor of fire-tried gold, may by its genuineness lead to praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ appears."  (1 Peter 1:6-7)

"Count it pure joy when you are involved in every sort of trial. Realize that when your faith is tested this makes for endurance.  Let endurance come to its perfection so that you may be fully mature and lacking in nothing."  (James 1:2-4)

"'Even though I walk through a dark valley, I fear no evil, for You are at my side." (Psalm 23:4)

"Be firm and steadfast! Do not fear nor be dismayed, for the Lord, your God, is with you wherever you go." (Joshua 1:9)

"We are afflicted in every way possible, but we are not crushed; full of doubts, we never despair.  We are persecuted but never abandoned; we are struck down but never destroyed." (2 Corinthians 4:8-9)

"The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is my life's refuge; of whom should I be afraid?" (Psalm 27:1)

"God is our refuge and strength, an ever present help in trouble. Thus we do not fear, though the earth be shaken and the mountains quake to the depths of the sea; though its waters rage and foam and mountains totter at its surging. The Lord of hosts is with us.  Our stronghold is the God of Jacob." (Psalm 46:2-4) 

"If Christ’s love is the enclosure wall (and we know that it is, for He has said that ‘My beloved is a garden enclosed), He encloses you; He IS the enclosure.”  (Mother Mary Francis PCC, from “Walls Around the World”)

thecloisteredheart.org     


Painting: August Eduard Schliecker