This is one of the craziest times I’ve experienced. Life as we know it is shutting down. Restaurants and bars are closed. Churches can’t meet in person. The economy is falling. A contagious pandemic is circling the globe.
In these moments fear tries to crash down the wall of your heart and make its home there. And then what? If you’re afraid where do you run to? When fear begins to rise, where’s your safe place?
God’s people living around 1000 BC knew fear. They experienced looking out over the walls of their city only to see the entire land covered with an enemy army. The army had one goal: lay siege, break down the walls, and destroy the entire city.
At this time, a musical group called “The Sons of Korah” wrote Psalm 46. Take a moment and read the words.
God is our refuge and strength,
an ever-present help in trouble.
Therefore we will not fear,
though the earth give way
and the mountains
fall into the heart of the sea
though its waters roar and foam
and the mountains
quake with their surging. Psalm 46:1-3
Positioned high on a hill, a fortress was built to protect those inside. High walls lined the property to make the fortress safe. But in the middle of the fortress, there was a refuge. A safe place. The refuge was the best place to go.
The songwriters don’t say they are running to a refuge in their man-made fortress. They are running to God. He is their refuge and strength. An ever-present help. In His refuge they find safety, joy, and a place that calms all fears. No matter what is happening outside.
So, where’s your refuge? Where are you looking for safety? Where are you placing your trust? Your joy? Your confidence? Is it your 401k? The stock market? The 4 walls of your house? A grocery store or pantry filled with food? A fresh bottle of hand sanitizer?
If those things are your refuge, you will be afraid and live in fear. Because those walls can’t handle the attacks this world brings. We need a refuge that will guard us, keep us, and protect us. One that will stand no matter what is going on.
That refuge is God. Why? What makes God different from every other refuge? Why can my fears be stopped in God and nothing else?
Because of Easter. Easter morning Jesus rose from the dead. Sin could not defeat Him. Evil could not defeat Him. The world could not defeat Him. Even death could not defeat Him. On Easter, Jesus proved His refuge will stand. And then He promises, “The one who believes in me will live, even though they die.” John 11:25.
That is the refuge you have in God. Not just right now, but at all times. You can place your confidence, your trust, your joy, your future, your happiness, and your security in His refuge. When you do, you’ll see there is no need to fear. Instead, you’ll say with the songwriters, “God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble!”