In God We Trust
Psalm 91 has been my Psalm to live by for many years. It’s my 911 call for daily help for protection for my loved ones and myself. The whole chapter is about “In God We Trust”. Those words took on a whole new meaning when I heard a former paratrooper, now a pastor, speak yesterday about the trust it takes to be a paratrooper. He read from Psalm 91, which is considered “The Soldier’s Psalm”. He shared this story.
Almost 100 years ago, during World War I, the 91st Infantry Brigade of the U.S. Expeditionary Army was preparing to enter combat in Europe. Because their commander was a devout Christian, he assembled his men and gave each of them a little card on which was printed the 91st Psalm, the same number Psalm as their brigade. They agreed to recite that Psalm daily. After they had begun praying the Psalm, the 91st Brigade was engaged in three of the bloodiest battles of World War I. Other American units that fought in the same battles had up to 90 percent casualties, but the 91st Brigade did not suffer a single combat-related casualty.
Psalm 91:4 “He will cover you with His feathers; and you will take refuge under His wings. His faithfulness will be a protective shield.”
The pastor went on to show a video of paratroopers jumping out of an airplane and he said: “As you watch this video, think about how many things you must trust in to be a paratrooper.” Right away, I thought, “your parachute”, but, oh, as explained by the pastor, there’s so much more: The pilot….trusting he is sober and competent; the navigator….trusting you don’t get released over a swamp; the crew chief…that he knows his aircraft inside and out; the jumpmaster…who gives accurate instructions to the jumpers; the rigger….who packs, maintains and repairs the parachutes; the jumper in front of you and behind you…who you check their rigging and they check yours.
Clearly “in God we trust”, but the fact is, shouldn’t we be those who others say “In Bob I trust”, “In Donna I trust”, etc.? As God-followers, wouldn’t it be prudent for us to follow His example and be dependable, honorable, devoted and faithful people, and prove our trustworthiness…..like the many that a paratrooper must depend on? This final photo I came across as I was searching paratrooper images for this post. It speaks volumes about how others view our trustworthiness, and the ability to affirm “In God I trust and in you I trust!”