God is Our Refuge and Strength

“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea; Though the waters thereof roar and be troubled, though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof. Selah.” (Psa. 46:1-3)

In this world of great uncertainty, we must always remember that this world is not where we find our strength, but we find our strength in God. I sometimes find myself getting caught up in all the unbelievable chaos that is happening in our world and I wonder how we can ever get through this time of Jacob’s Trouble. I often turn to hymns and songs that I sing or hum throughout the day and they help keep me focused on Him. There is a hymn called “God Is Our Strength and Refuge” based on Psalm 46 and I find it very comforting. We are not to have a spirit of fear in this world. Our only fear should be a fear of God, meaning where we take God seriously and put our trust and faith in Him. He is where we find strength and this fear of taking Him seriously makes us fearless. This helps us make decisions that may not be acceptable to the world but are the right decisions in God’s eyes. He is the one we go to for refuge, not to the worldly values and protection which really offer us very little protection and often, harm.

Today our Israel nations have lost their way. They have abandoned God’s laws and protection and now are sliding into ever more corruption and trouble. Confusion and anger are everywhere. We must not fall into this trap. Confusion, anger and anxiety lead us to follow those who do not have our best interests at heart, but because we want answers we often do as they say without any thought of the outcome of what they are telling us. We have become like sheep going to the slaughter, blindly accepting everything without thought about how it fits into God’s plans and what the Bible says about who we are in Christ Jesus, our Saviour. He is our refuge. When we get anxious, we think we must do as everyone tells us so that we can fit in and be taken care of. But is this always the right thing to do? Who is taking care of us and do they always have our best interests in mind? Acts 5:29-32 tells us who we are to obey, “Then Peter and the other apostles answered and said, We ought to obey God rather than men. The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom ye slew and hanged on a tree. Him hath God exalted with his right hand to be a Prince and a Saviour, for to give repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins.  And we are his witnesses of these things; and so is also the Holy Ghost, whom God hath given to them that obey him.” Obviously in general God wants us to obey the leaders He has put in place for us but when they ask us to out-rightly disobey God we must not obey. He is our strength, and He is our refuge, apart from Him we can do nothing.

It is interesting, especially for many Christians, that they want God’s blessings without feeling they need to obey Him. “Let him that is taught in the word communicate unto him that teacheth in all good things. Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.” God does not want to punish us whenever we do not follow Him, but He wants us to humble ourselves and pray and to turn away from our sinful ways. We must diligently seek Him through repentance. He is worthy of our trust and our faith. We can rest in Him. I believe we are in a testing phase right now. Are we on the side of the wheat or the tares, the sheep or the goats? Only God knows our hearts. Put the armour of God around you to protect you from this evil world. I believe there is no better way to end this article than to quote Psalm 91. This is known as the Soldier’s Psalm. “There are awe-inspiring testimonies of miraculous deliverance from acute danger in time of war. It has been recorded that during World War 1 (1914-1918), L.T.C. Whittensley was a Regimental Commander in the British Army. Every morning his regiment recited the 91st Psalm, declaring aloud their faith that God would protect them from danger. This regiment went over the wall on a number of occasions during the course of the war, facing furious enemy fire and almost certain death. Thousands of men were killed on their left and right sides, but not a single one of the soldiers in this regiment was wounded. It was reported that the German bullets seemed to bounce off Regimental Commander L.T.C. Whittensley’s men.” Psalm 91 is powerful protection from danger – So Greatly Loved (sogreatlyoved.blog)

Let’s end this article with Psalm 91, the psalm of protection. I encourage you to read the words daily for the wonderful protection it offers.

“He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.  I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust.  Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence.  He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler. Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day;  Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness; nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday. A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh thee. Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the wicked. Because thou hast made the LORD, which is my refuge, even the most High, thy habitation; There shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling. For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways. They shall bear thee up in their hands, lest thou dash thy foot against a stone. Thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder: the young lion and the dragon shalt thou trample under feet. Because he hath set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high, because he hath known my name. He shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honour him. With long life will I satisfy him, and shew him my salvation. Amen.