I’ve lived in tornado alley, and perhaps you have, or you are! Many have a secure room to shelter from the storm.
For Christians, day to day, our safe place is Almighty God.
The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge; my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold … His way is blameless; The word of the Lord is tried; He is a shield to all who take refuge in Him. (Psalm 18:2, 30)
This is a fact. Learning actually to take refuge in God is a process.
In Psalm 142, David was very low, had strong persecutors, was overwhelmed, and saw no escape. Here’s what he did:
Cried out to the Lord
TO THE LORD David cried aloud, made supplication, poured out his complaint, declared his trouble.
Reminded himself
David reminded himself that God is his refuge, that God is his portion in the land of the living.
Asked the Lord for help
David asked that the God give heed to his cry, for God to deliver him.
Trusted God
David looked ahead: The righteous will surround me, for You will deal bountifully with me. (Psalm 142: 7)
These are steps for us as well.
One: Go to God
God, in fact, is the refuge for His redeemed. We need to go to Him. TO HIM.
We must not trust in horses or anything or anyone else:
Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help and rely on horses, and trust in chariots because they are many and in horsemen because they are very strong, But they do not look to the Holy One of Israel, nor seek the Lord! (Isaiah 31:1)
Two: Remind ourselves
We must remind ourselves of who God is, and who we are to Him. He loves us with an eternal, infinite, faithful, awesome love. He is making us more and more like Christ. He will glorify us and take us to heaven. (Romans 8:28-30)
Three: Pray for help
Pray to the Sovereign God who loves you. Ask for help.
Christians have confident access to God in the Holy Spirit through our faith in Christ. (Ephesians 2:18, 3:12)
Four: Trust God
Believe that God hears you, knows your trouble, and is at work. He is present. He is for you.
God’s answer may be, probably will be, different than instant resolution. But He has heard us and He will bring good out of whatever is happening. He will.
PRESS ON !
