Have you ever put your trust in something that failed you? It may have looked reliable, capable — but in the end, it didn’t come through. In Isaiah 30, Scripture points out that the Israelites chose to take refuge in the shade of Egypt rather than in the shadow of the Almighty. They formed an alliance with Pharaoh instead of consulting God.
What they thought would be their protection ultimately became their shame.
Years ago, my husband Darian and I decided we wanted to become house flippers. This was during HGTV’s heyday — we had watched a few too many flipping shows and got carried away. So, we went to the bank, got a loan, and dove in. We bought a house, tools, appliances, and completely renovated the structure. The bank’s vice president personally gave us the loan and assured us everything would be fine. It was an interest-only loan, with the plan to convert it into a mortgage once the project was complete.
I’ll spare you all the details. In short, we finished the renovation and asked the banker about converting the loan. He told us we had plenty of time and not to worry. This continued for a couple of months. Then, our lives shifted — we were preparing to move out of state. Still, the banker insisted we should leave the loan as-is. It didn’t feel like the right decision, and we tried several times to transition the loan, but we were young. The banker was older and much more experienced with money. So, we trusted him.
Late one Sunday evening after we moved, we got a call that the FDIC had just acquired the bank — and our loan would be due at the end of the month. We had 30 days to pay off the house or get a new loan.
We didn’t have the money to pay it off. We had just planted Your Place Church in Pryor, Oklahoma, and invested most of our resources into it. By putting my trust in that banker, I felt like one of the Israelites who trusted in Pharaoh. That protection turned to shame real quick.
But God. He is so good. Psalm 91:1 (NIV) says, “Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.”
Sometimes, we find ourselves abiding under the wrong shadow. Pharaoh may have seemed strong and powerful in the natural, but he was no match for God. It’s so easy to put our trust in money, relationships, education, the economy, government, media — anything that appears important by the world’s standards. Yet every time we do, we end up just like the Israelites. That false shadow never brings rest. It only brings shame.
When Darian and I received that call from the banker, it didn’t take us long to repent and seek the Lord. We quickly stepped out from the shade the banker offered and ran to the shadow of the Almighty — and He came through. In the middle of that economic downturn, the Lord turned that house flip around and worked it out for our good. He’ll do the same for you.
Proverbs 3:5–6 (NIV) clearly tells us where to place our trust: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.”
I understand why the Israelites trusted Pharaoh. He was right in front of them. They saw his mighty horses, his armies, his chariots. His pyramids were magnificent. He seemed unstoppable. Consulting him felt like the obvious choice.
We often fall into the same trap. People, money, education — they’re visible and feel like the easy answer. But they are not God. They are distractions. According to Isaiah 30, trusting in them only leads to our shame.
There are many shadows we could abide under — but only one offers trustworthy power, protection, and true rest. Let’s choose to abide under the shadow of the Almighty. Time and time again, He has protected, healed, and provided for me. He is my safe refuge.
Whatever you need today, trust in the Lord. Consult Him. Stay in His shadow. And instead of shame, you will find rest.
AMEN \0/
❤️
So beautifully put, Tyra. Thank you for sharing your experience and wisdom–seek God and live under His shadow. God bless!
Tracy, thank you. There’s no place like His shadow.
Thank you for sharing your story and insight into staying in His shadow/protection.
Andrea, His shadow is the only place I want to be. ❤️
Dear Tyra….I enjoyed reading your devotion for today. I can certainly understand why you trusted the banker as he was right there with you. I have made a couple of things that really can relate to your story and made me feel shame. My situation is too long to take up your time to read it all, but for the past 5 years I have been living in a dark season so dark that I thought I would never get through. Just a short comment that you could maybe understand what I am trying to share with you. I was married for 54 years when my husband turned up with dementia, a violent kind. He would not listen to the neurologists to stop all drinking, and take the medication. He refused to believe he was ill, but every night for 3+ years he abused me in all kind of ways you can’t even imagine. I kept thinking that I could help him. Wrong on my part. Came a night when he tried to kill me. God kept telling me that I was in danger, but I really thought it was up to me to get him to do what needed to be done. What I didn’t realize that along with the disease, he also was an alcoholic which sent him into these dementia rages. I tell you this background as here comes a thing that happened after I had to have him evicted from our home of 40 years. I started to get all these statements in the mail that I knew nothing about. He was making me pay the house bills and he was stashing all his money in different financial places without my name on them. As the divorce dragged on for years it finally was done and when the assets were split, in one very large company which if I could tell you, I’m sure you would recognize the name. Tasha, it took me with my attorney to get them split the way the divorce dictated. I was wrong to trust them as there was a 6 digit money amount I was due and after 2 months they finally transferred it to my account, or so I thought. It was there but two weeks later they took it out of my account and put it back in my ex’s account without even notifying me. One day I logged on to see how these accounts were doing and discovered the money was gone and now my ex. had the ability to take all of the money leaving me with nothing. I was first so upset I could not function and then I got very angry. My attorney told me I would need to take care of it. He was the first person I shouldn’t have trusted as he had done things prior that was not proper, but I was not the lawyer so I thought he knew what he was doing. How wrong I was. I should have investigated in the beginning what type of man he was, plus he was 83 years old which worried me a little, but he took my case. The very large thing that I did was to trust this financial institution without checking with others. It has taken me another 3 months to get that money back and now I am trying to get all my money from there and put it somewhere I know it will be safe. Tasha, it is easy to trust someone who you see all the time and talks a good game , same as your banker did. Well, it was a very hard lesson to learn, but I went to God in prayer and told Him what happened. He is helping me to get over the shame I feel for not doing what I should have. I live alone in a Senior facility with 100 other people who all have problems and I could not tell them the whole story as they do not understand and they forget everything. My son has told me I am a liar and he said I am no longer his mother, so I have no support. All my other relatives are gone. You and the other (in)courage women help me as I love to read the devotions every morning no matter what. You have kept me grounded and helped me so much that you can’t even imagine. So I say thank you for your words today Tasha and I wish you and your family a Blessed Labor Day weekend. I love all of you for replying to me as it really makes me feel like I am not alone. Of course I have “The Trilogy” with me always, but you women are human beings that I feel I know which really I do so appreciate. Love to you, Tasha…….Betsy Basile
Betsy, I’m so sorry to hear about all of those hard things. I’m so grateful you have a Heavenly Father who never leaves you or forsakes you. He see you, loves you and is for you. Remain in His shadow it’s the best place to be. Have the best weekend.
Much love,
Tyra
Hi Tyra!
You don’t say how God provided for you, in this instance. Maybe you found a bank to take over the loan. Or maybe you quickly sold the house? Anyway, I’m happy it all worked out.
We often worry over things and don’t trust God to fix them. What a waste of time and effort!
Thank you, Irene, I’m sorry I didn’t finish out the story with details. It was actually quite the miracle but would take far too many words to get it all out there. The short story is that God supplied the money we needed from an unexpected source. He is so good.
Tyra,
Often times I rush ahead of God. Doing/making choices before consulting Him. Fortunately He is omnipotent & repairs my mistakes. I, then remember all the times He has gotten me through trials. Now trust comes easy for me.
Blessings 🙂