Psalm 91 – True Safety Found in the Secret Place

By Bunni Pounds

As a believer for (I can’t believe I am saying this!) thirty-two years, I have read Psalm 91 over and over and over again. Many people have the whole chapter memorized. Christians have underlined it, circled it, printed it on cards and handkerchiefs for the military or police, and have even printed it on pillowcases (yes, I have seen that as well!).

You name it - Christians have done it with Psalm 91. I would say that aside from Psalm 23, it is the most quoted Psalm in the Bible. That fact has made it very familiar to us – but being familiar with a scripture doesn’t necessarily mean that it has become revelation in our lives, or that it has taken root.

Only the Holy Spirit can bring revelation and change which is why I am crying out for revelation right now for us as we read and meditate on Psalm 91. We desperately need the Holy Spirit to breath upon these words and take them to a new level of understanding in our hearts. We need revelation of the secret place. 

“He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High
Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.
I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress;
My God, in Him I will trust.” (NKJV - Verses 1-2)

“You who sit down in the High God's presence, spend the night in Shaddai's shadow, Say this: "God, you're my refuge. I trust in you and I'm safe!"  (The Message  Bible– Verses 1-2)

There is a secret place in the presence of God, and it is a place that we can ABIDE in. It is a place that everyone does not go, but it is completely accessible by the blood of the Lamb. As we saw in Psalm 27 – the place of His presence is where strength is found. 

Psalm 27:5 says, “For in the time of trouble
He shall hide me in His pavilion;
In the secret place of His tabernacle
He shall hide me;
He shall set me high upon a rock.”

In the picture of Moses’ tabernacle, there was a place - past the outer gates, past the brazen laver, past the altar, past the inner courts of the table of shewbread and the lamp stand - called the Holy of Holies. This was the place where the presence of God dwelt between the cherubim on the top of the Ark of the Covenant. Only the high priest once a year could step into that holy place and atone for all the sins of the people. It was the MOST HOLY PLACE.

For us as believers - came Jesus to earth to bring us into the most holy place. His atonement was “once for all”. He died, was buried, and rose again. He split the veil of separation and opened up the presence of God, the secret place, for all that would believe and enter into it. 

Hebrews 9:11-12 says, “But Christ came as High Priest of the good things to come, with the greater and more perfect tabernacle not made with hands, that is, not of this creation. Not with the blood of goats and calves, but with His own blood He entered the Most Holy Place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption.”

This is how easy it is to enter into the secret place of God (the Most Holy Place) - just speak His name - JESUS. Believe with your heart and walk through the veil into His presence. His heart is so close. His presence is so close. His life is available to all – BUT it is a matter of faith. His secret place is just one step away through the eyes of faith as we step through the veil of His blood and sacrifice.

One of the biggest issues within the Body of Christ at the present is that most people never go to this place. We never walk into the secret place or if we do, we come in very rarely. There are many reasons why: we are afraid of the presence of God, we are trying to work our way into the presence of God, or we just don’t want it badly enough to go after it. We keep ourselves distracted by the things of the world and hope that the yearning in our hearts for something MORE will go away. The tragedy is that we do not walk through the veil on a regular basis and because of that - we are missing EVERYTHING. 

God wants us to dwell and abide in His presence. There is a lingering, there is a staying, and there is constant life and protection in the presence of God. 

But how do we really abide there? How do we stay?

The answer lies in one word: FAITH.

We enter through the veil by faith. We stay in the presence of God – in His secret place – by faith. We walk by faith. We cannot abide in the secret place any other way. It is impossible. There is only one way in – by faith. 

This is probably the most important thing I am going to write on Psalm 91: Anyone can come, anyone can stay, and anyone can live in His presence. It is open access to everyone because of the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus. Just put faith in His blood and enter into His presence. He is as close as our heartbeat, as close as our breath, and that is why there is safety and life in His presence. His presence surrounds us, and He covers us. 

“Surely He shall deliver you from the snare of the fowler,

And from the perilous pestilence

He shall cover you with His feathers,

And under His wings you shall take refuge;

His truth shall be your shield and buckler.

You shall not be afraid of the terror by night,

Nor of the arrow that flies by day, 

Nor of the pestilence that walks in darkness,

Nor of the destruction that lays waste at noonday.

A thousand may fall at your side,

And ten thousand at your right hand; 

But it shall not come near you.

Only with your eyes shall you look,

And see the reward of the wicked.

Because you have made the Lord, who is my refuge,

Even the Most High, your dwelling place,

No evil shall befall you,

Nor shall any plague come near your dwelling;

For He shall give His angels charge over you,

To keep you in all your ways.

In their hands they shall bear you up,

Lest you dash your foot against a stone.

You shall tread upon the lion and the cobra,

The young lion and the serpent you shall trample underfoot.” (Verses 3-13)

There is a place in God where He covers us with His wings, and we make Him our dwelling place. In that place alone - there is a greater level of protection and freedom. There - He truly becomes our refuge. Nothing can stop us or touch us in that dwelling place. 

I have heard a lot of people say through the years, “If you are really serving God and walking in His anointing, then watch out – because all hell will break out. Get ready for trials and tribulations. If you are making the devil mad, he will come after you with all guns blazing.” 

Those statements have always frustrated me, because I don’t constantly walk in trials, and I walk with God. The preacher that says, “If you aren’t being attacked, then you need to question whether you are walking with God and moving in the Spirit” can cause confusion and too much introspection in the Body of Christ. I am not saying you don’t ever get attacked (believe me, I have been in politics for a career – I know about persecution), but I don’t think you can make a definitive statement such as that about attacks on our lives. 

A lot of people are getting attacked because they are outside of the will of God and NOT walking with Him. Their finances are out of order, their health is out of order because of sin, and their mind is getting attacked by the devil at every turn. Does that mean that they are causing the devil great harm? Not really. 

Psalm 91 says something opposite – that there is safety in the secret place of God. 

I personally think that we give the devil too much credit for things going on in our lives and definitely too much power. Who cares about him, really? He was defeated at the cross. Satan is powerless when I am dwelling in the secret place of the MOST HIGH. 

Let me say this again another way – Almighty God is all powerful and the enemy is nothing! God is our protection. God is our refuge. There is no plague, no pestilence, no darkness, no terror by night, and no serpents that can touch me when I am in the hand of my Father. Why are we so afraid of a powerless enemy that has been defeated by the death and the resurrection of Christ? All he can do is try to scare us, try to deceive us, and try to accuse us. Powerless is what he is! Powerless!

Am I saying that “bad” things don’t happen to good people and that people that walk in the secret place never have to experience trials?  No. 

When looking at Psalm 91, we must look at it through the funnel of the rest of scripture. Bad things do happen to good people sometimes. Christians get sick, have miscarriages, experience the heartache of having a baby born with disabilities, feel the death of a loved one, die in battle, and know heartaches. There is sin and death unleashed in this world and we see the effects of that every day in our world. 

We see the effects of sin and death in the story of Job. In the case of Job and the case in our lives as believers as well, the devil didn’t cause any problems that God didn’t allow. God is right there in the midst of it to walk with us through it even when we are experiencing the consequences of our own sin. Our eternal hope is that ultimately God will rescue and deliver us. He is faithful who made the promise.

This next section of Psalm 91 is God speaking to us…..

“Because he has set his love upon Me, therefore I will deliver him; I will set him on high, because he has known My name. 

He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him;
I will be with him in trouble;
I will deliver him and honor him.
With long life I will satisfy him,
And show him My salvation.” (Verses 14-16)

This is the kind of God that we serve, not a powerless God who can’t deliver us. “Because he has set his love upon Me, there I will deliver him.”

He will deliver me, set me in high places, and give me long life, not just on this earth but eternal life. Paul said, “To live as Christ and to die is gain.”

All that God asks of me is that I set my love upon Him, and I know His name. 

That response to His love is so easy when I allow Him to overwhelm me with it and show me the power of His name. I want to be a part of His story. I want to walk in His love. His love is so great – why wouldn’t I want to give Him everything in return? This response seems so trivial in comparison to His great love. 

My good friend Larry was saved in prison after years of drug abuse.  He says this in his testimony, “Jesus has captured my heart, and I have never been the same.”

Has He captured our hearts? Have we responded to His love? 

We can come into His secret place right now by faith and dwell. Today. He is our true safety. Through the days of pestilence and trials, He is always with us in the middle of it all. 

Political Corner: In politics, it can feel like you are under attack many days. If you run for office, you must endure ads against you by opponents, whisper campaigns, friends turning against you. If you are in office or work for someone in office, there can be phone calls that are hateful, sometimes bad media reports, political “enemies”, or even places where you might feel unsafe. This psalm is incredibly important for you to live in the “shadow of the Most High.” It is even a great responsibility for you to live in intimacy with Jesus and free from offences, bitterness, and unforgiveness. Jesus desires to walk with you every day – even in government and politics. He will watch over your heart if you will let Him.