Hedged In

Job 1:9-10 says, "Satan answered the Lord and said, 'Does Job fear God for nothing? Have you not made a hedge around him;, around his household, and around all that he has on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands and his possessions have increased in the land."

When my family and I were living in the Minneapolis area several years ago, a group of self-appointed do-gooders decided that the wolves in the Como Zoo in St. Paul needed to be set free, so they cut open a hole in the fence where the wolves were penned. The wolves, however, did not come out, so these people decided they would coax them out by placing meat just outside of the hole they had cut in the fence. Still, those Minnesota timber wolves remained where they were, completely contented.

Some years ago a group of educators decided to remove the chain-link fence that encircled their elementary school's playground They believed the fence promoted feelings of confinement and restraint. But then a curious thing happened. They noticed that as soon as the fence was removed, the children huddled in the center of the playground to play. Unknown to the "experts," the children had actually gained a sense of security from the presence of the fence, just as the wolves in the Como Zoo bad.

It was this same kind of security that Satan recognized in the life of Job. Figuratively speaking, God had placed a hedge or fence around Job and all he possessed in order to protect him from evil. Job was hemmed in on all sides by this hedge, but it was not a matter of constraint; it was a matter of security. He could live confidently, knowing that nothing could reach him without first having to go through God's hedge of protection.

Every believer today can have that same assurance. The Bible provides us with a first line of defense. The commandments and exhortations that some people view as divine restrictions are really God’s protection plans. Their purpose is to prevent us from engaging in behavior that will hurt us. In addition, we even have the omnipotent hands of God encircling our lives each and every day. No disaster or calamity can touch us that will separate us from our Heavenly Father. Only those things that God knows ultimately will prove to be for our good are allowed to penetrate this divine hedge. So, do not recoil against the restrictions God places in your life. They are hedges for your security and for your protection. Rejoice that God has his arms underneath you (Deuteronomy 33:27) and His hands behind you, before you and over you (Psalm 139:5). You are totally encompassed by His hedge of protection. Inside God’s hedge you are safe! Remember always that God’s hedges are built for protection, not imprisonment.

May the the Lord bless you!