Psalm 46:1-3

"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."

The daily paper screams about one disaster after another. Some are natural, and some are manmade. All are troubling. For the most part, we hear of these things from afar, not having experienced them for ourselves. What must it be like to be in the very center? We cannot imagine. What would we do if we found ourselves in the center? We cannot say. Some events shake us to the very core, such as the attacks on the World Trade Center, while others are just troubling.

Here in Psalm 46 David speaks of natural disasters that would be most fearful to experience. He speaks of the earth being removed, the mountains being carried into the midst of the sea, and the waters roaring so loudly that the mountains shake. Try to envision the immensity and horror of such events. Earthquakes are frightening because the very earth is shaken. The strong footing that a moment before was so enjoyable is itself found to be uncertain. Upon what can people depend?

In his prophecy, Habakkuk writes in 3:17, 18, "Although the fig tree shall not blossom, neither shall fruit be in the vines; the labor of the olive shall fail, and the fields shall yield no food; the flock shall be cut off from the fold, and there shall be no herd in the stalls; yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will joy in the God of my salvation." Here we have another great and frightening catastrophe; famine. This is another event that can be most distressing. Imagine walking to the local supermarket only to find that there is nothing on the shelves. Not even a loaf of bread. If this were to happen there would be unmitigated panic in the streets. People would be absolutely out of control because of it. Upon what can people depend?

In both of these passages the answer to the question is found. At the beginning of Psalm 46 we find, "God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore will not we fear ..." In spite of the awful catastrophes that are mentioned, David points out that the LORD is a refuge and strength. In the end of the passage in Habakkuk we read, "... yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will joy in the God of my salvation." With nothing on his plate the prophet was expressing great confidence in the God of his salvation. There is no loss that is too great for the LORD who can be depended upon.

On the face of it this may seem obvious. We have all been told that God is mighty beyond our knowing. He is referred to as being omnipotent. Yet there are certainly times when people wonder how true these things really are. Often, in the midst of difficulties, people give up on God and His love and might. Since He did not answer right away, or within their desired time frame, or according to what is their desire, they have decided that He does not care, or, in the extreme, that He does not even exist.

Parents of small children understand that what their children desire is not always what is best for them. The child that decides he wants to play in the middle of a busy highway does not perceive the danger, and must be restrained by the loving parent. In fact, a parent that would allow such behavior would be considered to be unloving, unkind, even unfit, and rightly so. Could it really be that the reason people do not get the answers that they would like from God is because He is like that loving parent? Could it be that He knows what is good for us better than we know ourselves? In Matthew 7:9-11 Jesus asks, "Or what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone? Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent? If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven (being not evil, but righteous) give good things to them that ask him?" (parenthesis mine). Like parents to their children, God is far more wise than are we. Unlike parents to their children, God is infinitely more wise than are we.

Later in Psalm 46 we read, "Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth." Since the psalm starts with depending upon the LORD, the ending having to do with waiting on Him is appropriate. Usually, not knowing where to turn brings despair. God says that He can be depended upon, and that we should wait on Him to set things right. Even in the midst of the most trying circumstances we are to wait on God. Waiting shows that we really do trust Him. Running ahead shows impatience. In Acts 16 is recorded the story of Paul and Silas in prison in Philippi. In verses 23-25 we read, "And when they had laid many stripes upon them, they cast them into prison, charging the jailor to keep them safely: who, having received such a charge, thrust them into the inner prison, and made their feet fast in the stocks. And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them." Having been beaten, and thrust into prison, they praised God. They knew what it meant to wait on God, and trust Him in all things. They knew Psalm 46, "God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble." May we learn the same.

HJK