Finding The Secret Place

He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.
Psalm 91:1 (NKJV)

Jewish tradition attributes authorship of Psalm 91 to Moses. But what is the “secret place” it mentions? It was not the tabernacle itself that he is referring to (Exodus 25-31); it is more about his spiritual relationship to his God. Why? Because the tabernacle erected in that desert is obviously no secret. And yet Moses says that he or she who dwells in that “secret place” will abide under the shadow of the Almighty. 

What is this secret place? And where can I find it? Is the secret place the Word of God? Well, it can’t be that because everybody, believer and unbeliever alike, has access to the Word. Is it a church building? The Church as an institution cannot be the secret place; everyone has access to it. It’s not worship either, because anybody can do that. So what is this secret place that puts me right under the shadow of the Almighty?

When he alludes to a secret place, where he says he can feel accepted and affirmed and protected by the shadow presence of an almighty God, the secret place must be a place that provides cover enough that you would want to abide there and rest there forever.

The secret place exists under the covering of Christ, who sacrificed His body for our lives. Among all the issues of our time—fires burning, multiplying viruses, threatening conflict, brewing tensions, mounting wars, violence in the street—His death has given us a safe place.

We are hard pressed on every side and the only place that protects who we are totally is the secret place of the Most High God. Only from that place can we balance on one hand the stress of these strange times, and in the other hand the goodness of our Almighty God.

That’s the secret place. The Holy Spirit did not come to visit or pass by. The Holy Spirit came to indwell permanently so that if surrendered, we are always aware of being in God’s proximity.

The secret place is the internal surrender to the Holy Spirit that always keeps you right under the shadow of the Almighty. 

The person who lives his or her life in the surrendered space of being led by the Spirit has found the secret to living a life that counts, a life of meaning, a life of substance, a life of resilience. Living your life with your internal spaces surrendered to the Spirit means you abide under the shadow of the Almighty.