Psalm 46
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.
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.
The Lord Almighty is with us;
the God of Jacob is our fortress.
Come and see what the Lord has done,
the desolations he has brought on the earth.
He makes wars cease
to the ends of the earth.
He breaks the bow and shatters the spear;
he burns the shields with fire.
He says, “Be still, and know that I am God;
I will be exalted among the nations,
I will be exalted in the earth.”
The Lord Almighty is with us;
the God of Jacob is our fortress.
When my brother Joe and I were
very young we shared a bedroom. As I recall our Mom and Dad would take turns
tucking us into bed and praying with us each night. One night it was our father’s turn and after he had done his
duty he went to the door and turned out the light in our room. The hallway
light was still on so for just a moment our Dad stood in the doorway, in his
undershirt, silhouetted by the light behind him. Then he turned off the hall
light and all was dark.
After a moment or two my brother
whispered across the room to me, “Did you
see that?”
“Yeah,” I said in a voice filled
with awe, “he’s HUGE!”
Now at that time our father was
about 5’10” with his shoes on, but to us as little boys he was the
biggest, strongest, most awesome man we could imagine. The vision of him in the
doorway simply reinforced our trust in his strength!
The psalm writer focuses on the
strength of the Lord:
The Lord Almighty is with us;
the God of Jacob is our fortress.
Come and see what the Lord has done,
the desolations he has brought on the earth.
He makes wars cease
to the ends of the earth.
He breaks the bow and shatters the spear;
he burns the shields with fire.
As little boys
my brother and I had no doubt about our father’s
strength. When he was with us we felt safe and secure.
The people of
ancient Israel had many fearsome enemies who desired their destruction. The
psalm writer is reminding them that God is stronger than any enemy and that
they can find safety and security in his strength.
It’s
important to note that the psalm is not saying we will never face trouble!
Rather, God’s word is reminding us that when we do face trouble of
all kinds, we find our strength and hope in God.
In John 16:33
Jesus says,
“I
have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you
will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”
Where
do you need to see God’s
strength in your life today? Remember that he is stronger than any foe you may
face and that your peace is in his strength.
Lord,
Thank
you for your word. Help me to focus more on who you are than on the struggles
and stresses of life. Help me to anchor my peace in your great strength. Amen.
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