April 3, 2020
God is Our Refuge and Strength
Good morning Family,
God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Therefore, we will not fear, though the earth gives way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging. Psalms 46:1-3 (NIV)
When the world seems to be falling apart around us, we have the only Source of real security – God our Father. Our world with all its advancements in education, technology and science, is no safer today than it was a thousand years ago. Anything can happen, at any second. The perfect example is what we are seeing in our world today. It is evident to all that there is no real security unless we have placed ourselves into the hands of our eternal God. When you think of the word refuge, what do you think of, maybe a safe place?
God is a refuge to His children in that He protects them. The fact that God protects His own is a truth He wants us to know and be comforted by. However, the fact that God is our refuge does not mean that no danger will threaten, and no harm will befall a believer. God is who we turn to in troubled times.
God is also a refuge in that He protects us from ourselves, our own sinful natures. By the work of the Holy Spirit, God sanctifies our hearts and makes us more and more like Christ.
…and lead us not into temptation but deliver us from the evil one. Matt 6:13 (NIV)
How is it that God is a refuge to his children? God is a refuge for His children in that He brings them peace.
Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests. Luke 2:14 (NIV)
God is our strength. Believers are to be strong in the Lord.
Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Eph 6:10 (NIV)
Our faith and trust in Christ is where we receive the strength from God to go through tough times.
No matter how strong we think we are, our flesh is weak. Left to our own devices, we will fall into temptation and fail in any worthy endeavor. The weakness inherent in human nature is why the Bible instructs us to take our refuge and strength from the Lord. As we learn to rely on God’s refuge and strength instead of our own, we experience joy, peace, and contentment during the storms in our lives.
May God be Your refuge and strength,
Pastor Dennis