When my dad was a little boy, he got the grand idea of riding a rug down the stairway in his family’s farmhouse (like a sled down a hill). His first descent went swimmingly, and it was so much fun, he decided to do it again. The second time, he didn’t get the rug positioned just right, and his heels hooked on a stair tread. The momentum threw him forward, and his body flew into a head-first somersault. Then, he said, something that felt very much like a hand pushed against his chest and reversed his motion. Instead of landing on his head, he landed on his rear, and he suffered nothing more than a few bruises. It could have been so much worse. He believes to this day that an angel stopped his dangerous plummet.

We like to think we’ve been assigned a guardian angel. Sometimes we tease that we work our guardian angel overtime—Dad sure did! But if you’ll look at the opening line of verse 11, you’ll notice it says angels—plural. In other words, all of His angels. They serve as “bodyguards” for those who dwell in the shadow of the Most High. Not only do they guard us, but the King James says “they bear thee up.” Picture a mother gently cradling her child. This is how we are held by members of the heavenly host. Life’s pathway might be rocky, but we have a support system in place that helps carry us through.

The truth is, there is a war that rages around us in the spiritual realm. The evil one’s minions battle for the souls of men, but our souls are safe and secure, protected by God’s army of angels.