My #1 Refuge | How to effectively stay calm and stand unshaken (Psalm 60-67)
Is there one person in your life you are just comforted by? Maybe it’s whenever you go to your best friend’s house and curl up on their inviting couch. Or a hug from your spouse. Possibly, it’s the warmth and familiarity of your parent’s house. For David, he sought his refuge from God alone.
He had a personal relationship with God which solidified his steadfast heart to lean into Him. God was his refuge and strength!
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His refuge is a gift…
[F]or you have been my refuge, a strong tower against the enemy. Let me dwell in your tent forever! Let me take refuge under the shelter of your wings!
Psalm 61:3-4
On God rests my salvation and my glory; my mighty rock, my refuge is God. Trust in him at all times, O people; pour out your heart before him; God is a refuge for us.
Psalm 62:7-8
Let the righteous one rejoice in the Lord and take refuge in him! Let all the upright in heart exult!
Psalm 64:10
Not only is the Bible a gift, God’s refuge is also! And they go hand-in-hand so beautifully.
Under threat…
Psalms 61-64 are all linked under the common theme of trusting God when under threat. What does David remind us to do? Draw into God, seek Him, and request help.
What do you do when under threat? You may not have the threat of your life on the line or a conspirator trying to form a coup, but you may have those who wish for your destruction. Sometimes just being a Christian is enough for someone to hold an intense hatred for you.
David’s wife, Michal…
Speaking of someone who hates you, jump back to the irrational anger David’s own wife had for him when he danced before the Lord.
As the ark of the Lord came into the city of David, Michal the daughter of Saul looked out of the window and saw King David leaping and dancing before the Lord, and she despised him in her heart.
Psalm 56:3-4
While not too long ago, she “loved David” (1 Samuel 18:20) and even helped him escape as her Dad, King Saul, tried to murder him (1 Samuel 19:7-11). (Granted, of course, they had a whole host of events between these two occasions–when he fled, she was given in marriage to another man; then David had her brought back to him even when her new husband pleaded and chased after her.)
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Source of peace…
David had a great understanding of where to rest in peace while the world tumultuously ravages against him. David had been burned by nearly everyone around him. Those closest to him often turned on him: his mentor, wife, son, commander, etc. He knew his faith and trust could not be placed in man, but on one who is greater than man!
[F]rom the end of the earth I call to you when my heart is faint. Lead me to the rock that is higher than I.
Psalm 61:2
For God alone my soul waits in silence; from him comes my salvation. He alone is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall not be greatly shaken.
Psalm 62:1-2
For God alone, O my soul, wait in silence, for my hope is from him. He only is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall not be shaken. On God rests my salvation and my glory; my mighty rock, my refuge is God. Trust in him at all times, O people; pour out your heart before him; God is a refuge for us.
Psalm 62:5-8
Hear him out…
While David seeks refuge with the One who can bring true comfort, he also asks for God to hear his pleas and prayers.
It was more than a prayer blurted out for an immediate answer. He knew from experience that God doesn’t always answer ‘yes’, nor does He always give an answer right away. He still goes to Him anyway and requests for his prayers to be heard.
Hear my cry, O God, listen to my prayer.
Psalm 61:1
Hear my voice, O God, in my complaint.
Psalm 64:1a
O you who hear prayer, to you shall all flesh come.
Psalm 65:2
Continual vows…
This is not a passive faith, nor do we serve a passive God. He is active and living; our faith ought to match that! Share on XAgain, this is not a passive faith, nor do we serve a passive God. He is active and living; our faith ought to match that! David practiced the traditions handed down by his forefathers.
God wants Israel to acknowledge her dependence on him, by giving thank offerings for his mercies and by praying to him in times of need. Those who do so may expect God’s gracious answer to their prayers. God also desires obedience to his moral law. … Vows that accompanied prayer in times of need, usually involving thank offerings, always involving praise of the Lord for his answer to prayer.
NIV Study bible
For you, O God, have heard my vows; you have given me the heritage of those who fear your name. So will I ever sing praises to your name, as I perform my vows day after day.
Psalm 61:5,8
David praised, prayed, and made vows. He took seriously his commitment to the One he sought refuge in.
Author similarities…
Psalm 66 is not identified as a Psalm of David, yet holds closely to his mindset.
PRAISES
Shout for joy to God, all the earth; sing the glory of his name; give to him glorious praise! Say to God, “How awesome are your deeds! So great is your power that your enemies come cringing to you. All the earth worships you and sings praises to you; they sing praises to your name.” Selah
Psalm 66:1-5
THANKFULNESS
Bless our God, O peoples; let the sound of his praise be heard, who has kept our soul among the living and has not let our feet slip. For you, O God, have tested us; you have tried us as silver is tried. You brought us into the net; you laid a crushing burden on our backs; you let men ride over our heads; we went through fire and through water; yet you have brought us out to a place of abundance.
Psalm 66:8-12
VOWS
I will come into your house with burnt offerings; I will perform my vows to you, that which my lips uttered and my mouth promised when I was in trouble. I will offer to you burnt offerings of fattened animals, with the smoke of the sacrifice of rams; I will make an offering of bulls and goats. Selah
Psalm 66:13-15
REQUEST
I cried to him with my mouth, and high praise was on my tongue. If I had cherished iniquity in my heart, the Lord would not have listened. But truly God has listened; he has attended to the voice of my prayer. Blessed be God, because he has not rejected my prayer or removed his steadfast love from me!
Psalm 66:17-20
Why God heard…
We cannot know the reasons God chooses ‘yes’, ‘no’, or ‘maybe’ when answering our prayers in His timing… but we can know that it is always with our best interest in mind: our relationship with God. In contrast, the author of Psalm 66 gives one clear reason why God would choose to not hear his prayer.
If I had cherished iniquity in my heart, the Lord would not have listened.
Psalm 66:18
We should all take note of this when seeking refuge and prayer requests, to ensure that our hearts are repentant and we are free from a continuously sinful lifestyle. To clarify, that does not mean sinless perfection, it means that we are not choosing to live in a repetitive sin without repenting and changing our behavior.
Recognizing our place of refuge…
David models a mindset we should all take into consideration for implementing in our own lives. He was not perfect, yet continuously went to God for refuge, strength, and help. It is there that we must also go.
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I am praying through Psalms right now and always surprised and blessed by the range of emotion and the active stance of the writers.
Great points… good compilation of the events in David’s life and his focus.