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Category Archives: My God is my Refuge

My God is…my shield 2 Samuel 22:30-32

06 Nov

2 Samuel 22: 30-32 

With your help I can advance against a troop;
with my God I can scale a wall.

 “As for God, his way is perfect:
The Lord’s word is flawless;
he shields all who take refuge in him.
For who is God besides the Lord?
And who is the Rock except our God?

Duck and cover

That’s an interesting phrase, isn’t it. I think it might mean very different things to different people. When I thought of it, as a resident of Oregon, I thought about getting out of a pouring deluge of rain. For those who grew up during the cold war, it reminds them of drills they had in school when they had to go under their desks to prepare for a feared nuclear attack.

For my husband who actually experienced a bombing in Saudi Arabia it may have a more urgent tone. Though he wasn’t in the main building, most of what he owned was embedded with glass from the window shattered by the explosion. I’m pretty sure if he heard someone yell, “duck and cover”, he would.

When do you duck and cover?

There are many times in our lives when we, “duck and cover”. When people aren’t kind to us, we often withdraw from our friends. When one of our ideas is shot down at work, we sheepishly go back to work vowing never to offer any suggestions again for fear of being embarrassed. Some of us have been hurt by love one too many times and are not going to put ourselves out there just to get hurt again. We all duck and cover sometimes.

What covers you? 

When you duck and cover, do you really find protection from the things you fear? You need a powerful shield to protect you from all the things life throws at you. God promises to be that shield, “He shields all who take refuge in him.”

So how do we duck and cover with God?

When things hit the fan, and you’re sure they’re only getting worse, duck and cover in the Lord’s word. When it seems life is falling apart stop and pray, really talk it through with the one who protects you. Seek out other Christians who can help you to stay close to the Lord and seek out His protection from things that might harm you. Whatever you do don’t isolate yourself from those who care, because the Devil wants to get you on your own so he can try to break you down. Stay close to cover and be protected by the one who loves you more than you’ll ever know.

All things are possible with God

Sometimes our problems seem insurmountable. But the God of the universe is able to make all things work for the good of those that love Him. I love the verse from our reading, “with my God I can scale a wall.” I know that Samuel probably didn’t mean that literally, but I have to admit I did see him as Spiderman for a second in my mind. But what Samuel writes is true, God can help us overcome the walls in our life.

 
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Posted by on November 6, 2012 in My God is my Guard, My God is my Refuge, My God is My Shield

 

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My God is…Ever-Present Psalm 46:1-6

02 Oct

Psalm 46:1-6 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. “Selah” There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy place where the Most High dwells. God is within her,she will not fall; God will help her at break of day. Nations are in uproar, kingdoms fall; he lifts his voice, the earth melts.

Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it.

Sometimes we get busy. Sometimes we get bored. Sometimes we’re pissed off. Then something amazing happens, maybe a call from a long-lost friend or someone repays an old debt. Maybe it’s just that you hit all the lights green, but that something amazing can reawaken you. Get you revived and looking for the good things in life. In Genesis 28 Jacob was sleeping when he was given a message from God that reawakened him. After he awoke he said, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it.”

I didn’t know it.

How often could we say that about our own lives? The Lord was here and I didn’t know it. We forget. We get busy and distracted by the life we’re leading. We get overwhelmed by work, family and play. We let our eyes slip from what’s really important. But He is not distracted. So often we only look to God when we need something. There’s a reason for that, He’s reliable.

An ever-present help in trouble.

Our verse from Psalm 46, above, reminds us that our God is an ever-present help in trouble. No matter what kind of trouble. Many people are concerned about the politics of our nation. What does the verse say about that? “Nations are in uproar, kingdoms fall; he lifts his voice, the earth melts.” He can take care of it. He could melt the world with His voice if He wanted to, surely we can trust Him to handle our politics. We can trust Him with anything.

Therefore we will not fear

I am frozen by fear. Ok, not frozen really, just extremely slow-moving. Snails move at a faster pace. I don’t like to take risks. Not even calculated ones. In fact, I can create fear where there shouldn’t be any. In school, I never tried to get A’s, because I was afraid of what would happen if I didn’t get them. I am afraid when I enter a room. I’m not just afraid in a room of strangers, but even people I know. I’m afraid I won’t know what to say or worse, I’ll say something stupid. I have great ideas, but I don’t follow through, because I’m afraid they won’t work. I’m afraid to watch my kids play on the playground, afraid they might hurt themselves. Obviously I face many of these fears, and for me they’re not debilitating, but I wonder what my life would look like if I had no fear. What if I trusted the Lord. I don’t mean being stupid, but not living in unrealistic fear. Would I start a business? Write a book? Go on a speaking tour? Make a new friend? Spread the Gospel?

Living boldly for Christ

I want to start living boldly for Christ. I want to be brave and trust that the Lord has got my back. I’m scared to say it, but I want to face challenges head on. I want to be able to wake up and say, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it.”

How are you living boldly?

 
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Posted by on October 2, 2012 in My God is ever-present, My God is my Refuge, Psalm

 

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My God is…My Refuge Psalm 62:5-8

09 Aug

Psalm 62:5-8 Yes, my soul, find rest in God; 
my hope comes from him.
Truly he is my rock and my salvation;
he is my fortress, I will not be shaken.
My salvation and my honor depend on God;
he is my mighty rock, my refuge.
Trust in him at all times, you people;
pour out your hearts to him,
for God is our refuge.

Definition of REFUGE

1: shelter or protection from danger or distress
2: a place that provides shelter or protection
3: something to which one has recourse in difficulty
I don’t know if you’ve ever watched the old Lost in Space series. Our family gets on kicks of watching entire series of old shows. We’ve seen all nine seasons of Little House on the Prairie, Some of Battle Star Galactica and Buck Rodgers. One of the first series my husband shared with my boys was Lost in Space (the old one). The very first one is called No Where to Hide. In this episode, as the space family is crossing a large body of water in their rover of sorts, they face large storms that threaten their very existence. After they go through that harrowing experience, they get down on their knees. The don’t take their safety for granted.

Wild wonderful adventures just ahead

The Robinson family has just come through one ordeal, and their about to go into three seasons worth of ordeals. Every time Will, the son on the show gets into trouble, their trusty robot says “Danger Will Robinson” Wouldn’t it be great if we had a robot who shouted that when danger was lurking? Sometimes it seems like our lives are like the Robinsons. We get through one tragedy, one struggle to find that there are more on their way. Sometimes it feels like we’re being bombarded.

My salvation and my honor depend on God;
he is my mighty rock, my refuge. 

God is my refuge. When I am overwhelmed by the tumultuous seas of life; struggle with family, loss, or disappointments, I need Will Robinson’s Robot to should out “Danger”. Perhaps then I would be more likely to look quickly to my Lord. Our verse tells us that our salvation and our honor depend on God. Not only does our salvation and survival rely on God, but our honor as well. Sometimes when things are seemingly going wrong, it feels like we’re failures. But in our weakness we are made strong, because God is our refuge and our mighty rock.

God is our shelter or protection from danger or distress

God is our refuge. He shelters and protects us from the dangers of this world, and of the spiritual dangers that are all around us. We can cling to him in the storm, and we will be kept safe. He will protect us and our faith so that we might remain steadfast in Him.

Trust in him at all times, you people;
pour out your hearts to him,
for God is our refuge.

I love this part of the verse. I especially like the “pour out your hearts to him” part. I love the idea that God wants us to vent to him. I am the sort of person who sorts through life verbally (no surprise to anyone who knows me). I talk things out. I think out loud. Sometimes that means I have to take things back, because by the end of the thought process, I no longer think what I said in the beginning is true. That can be incredibly frustrating to someone like my husband who only speaks when he has thought about what he is going to say. But here I feel like God is saying He’ll listen to my ramblings, and is going to let me vent to Him about everything that is irritating me. I always feel better after I vent. I just need to vent to God more often. He is our refuge. He is our shelter and protection. Praise God.

 

 
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Posted by on August 9, 2012 in My God is my Refuge, Psalm

 

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