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It's A Wrap

In my last post, I wrote about being swaddled.  I mentioned both a baby (Jesus) being swaddled by cloth and us being swaddled in God’s love.

Relatedly, I ran across the word “wraparound”.  To wraparound is to encircle or to curve and lap over another. 

The “wraparound” that drew my attention is from the realm of higher education.  From one particular email I received, colleges are being encouraged to consider how to provide “wraparound support” for students.  That support includes, among other things, helping to meet the basic needs of students such as food, shelter and transportation.  It also includes helping them obtain access to resources for those who might struggle with mental health issues.

A word similar to “wraparound” is “surround”.  It means to enclose on all sides, to extend around the margin or edge of.

The “surround” that drew my attention is from the realm of a heavenly Father who loves us.  Here’s what it looks like:

  • You are a hiding place for me; you preserve me from trouble; you surround me with shouts of deliverance.  (Ps 32:7)
  • Many are the sorrows of the wicked, but steadfast love surrounds the one who trusts in the Lord.  (Ps 32:10)
  • As the mountains surround Jerusalem, so the Lord surrounds his people, from this time forth and forevermore.  (Ps 125:2)

 

The intention to provide wraparound support for students in higher education is certainly commendable.  After all, it’s important to assist students in navigating life.  I might, however, question higher education’s ability to deliver such support in the most meaningful of ways.

However, when we are surrounded with the Lord’s presence, His love and His protection, it is much more than commendable, it is absolutely crucial for us to fully navigate life.  And His ability to surround us should never be in question. 

May His Person, His love and His protection wraparound and surround you on all sides in the most meaningful of ways!

 

 

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