And you shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates, that your days and the days of your children may be multiplied in the land of which the Lord swore to your fathers to give them. (Deuteronomy 11:20-21)
The Hebrew word translated as “doorposts” is mezuzot, which is the plural form of mezuzah. Perhaps many of you have heard this word before or it might be that you have one of these attached to the door of your home. What we call a mezuzah is a small rectangular box containing a small parchment upon which is written an excerpt from the Shema (Hear O Israel!). Almost all of these mezuzot are embossed with the Hebrew letter ש shiyn which, in turn, represents the name שדי Shaddai. This instruction is given to us in order to demonstrate the importance of the Word of God being the guardian of our house that our “children may be multiplied in the land.”
On a more personal note, several years ago a destructive tornado tore through our neighborhood and did a lot of damage. Several families lost everything and had to start over; thankfully, we escaped any damage having only a few tree limbs fall into the yard. However, we kept our RV stored several miles away, unfortunately directly in the swath of destruction left by the tornado. As soon as I could get out of our neighborhood, I went to the storage facility expecting, in fact having been told, to see total destruction. As I rode into the facility, almost every storage unit was flattened with everyone’s property — household goods, boats etc. — littering the grounds.
To my surprise, our unit, though damaged, was not flattened; moreover, our RV was still parked where I left it. After examining it, I found that there was really no damage at all even though it was apparent that the winds had shaken everything on either side. As I came around the entrance door of the RV, my eye fixed on the small mezuzah we had placed on our RV years before — and then it hit me. He really does guard our homes and dwellings, even those that are only used periodically.
And that is the point today: our Father does defend and protect us acting as a shelter and refuge to us and to our children. Certainly our lives are touched with the negative aspects of this world but, in Him, we have assurance that we can overcome. In the midst of every storm, He is there watching over the doors and gates of His people. As it is written, “You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You” (Isaiah 26:3).
Blessings and Shalom,
Bill
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