DAD'S RAMBLINGS -- OUR REFUGE

DAD'S RAMBLINGS – OUR REFUGE

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

I am not given to dreams. I have so many of them that make no sense, probably caused by eating too much before I went to bed. Most of my dreams are forgotten five minutes after I wake up. But I had a dream during the last presidential last election cycle that sticks in my memory. In my dream, I was in a house at the ocean-side. The house had a big picture window overlooking the ocean. At the beginning of the dream, the ocean was calm, as smooth as glass. But as the dream progressed, a storm moved in and ocean became more and more turbulent. The waves were crashing and the wind was blowing, as it might be during a hurricane. But I was in the house looking out the window, and inside the house it remained calm. Although I could see the storm on the outside, it did not affect the serenity of the inside of the house. I had no fear of the storm because I was safe in the house.

I believe God was giving me assurance that He was in control and that I didn't need to fear about the results of the election. Now, a year later as I see the trouble of our nation, I can still live at peace in Christ, my refuge.

I think that is a picture of what this psalm speaks of. We have a refuge. Even though the earth is shaken, and the waves of the sea roar and the waves crash, we need not fear. He is a very present help in the time of trouble.

It may not be an election. It may be some other thing that concerns and troubles me, but I can be at rest as I trust in my Refuge. As verses 10 and 11 say, I can be still and know that God is God. The God of Jacob is my refuge.

Love, Dad