Reading these two verses, I reflected on what it meant to take refuge in the Lord. We're given the promise of joy, protection, blessing, God's favor that covers us like a shield. That's a lot to take in. I felt the need to ask the Lord to continue to teach me how to take refuge in him and to be mindful of when I needed to seek that refuge. That gave me pause - do I realize that need? How long does it take me to finally recognize my desperate need for the peace of God? In the stresses and busy-ness of life, we keep trudging along taking care of what needs to be done and before we realize it, we're like that proverbial frog in the pot of water with the temperature rising gradually to the boiling point. That's such a terrible image but isn't it true for the way we approach the hard / sad / trying / stressful times of life? What does it take for us to admit we can't handle things on our own and, in fact, were never meant to?
In times of crisis, we can seek refuge in God. We can draw near to him, set aside time to just be in his presence - with or without words - and know that we're right where we need to be. In that place of refuge, we're protected. That protection is described as a covering spread over us and also like a shield guarding us. In that place of comfort and safety, we know God's favor, we can experience joy and rejoicing even in the midst of our crisis. We can take sanctuary in the presence of God and watch him work through the trials and crises of life to bring us into a deeper awareness of his power, his watchfulness over us, and his loving intentions and attentions towards those who love his name.
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