God Speaking

“You have been a refuge for the poor, a refuge for the needy in his distress, a shelter from the storm and a shade from the heat…” (Isaiah 25:4)

A few years ago my husband and our youngest daughter were travelling through the United States on holiday, when as we were driving through Wyoming and marveling at miles and miles of seemingly emptiness, no people, no animals , suddenly the sky darkened and within minutes we were engulfed in one of the most frightening storms we have ever experienced. The most frightening part of the storm were huge hail stones that came so rapidly the wind shield wipers could not keep pace with them and visibility was down to zero. The noise as the hail hit the roof of our car was deafening and then as my husband peered through the glass he was horrified to see big dints in the paint of (what was his pride and joy) his new Audi. We had no way of knowing if there was any safe place for us to seek shelter and to get off the road, but just as we were becoming quite nervous my husband spotted a very wide overpass with enough room to pull off the road and we gratefully pulled underneath to be protected from the hail and just as we did a huge semi-trailer raced past us and we breathed a sigh of relief as neither my husband or I had realized the dangers of staying on the road in such a storm and not seeing nor hearing other traffic. When we returned to Canada and my husband took our car in to be repaired he was greeted with incredulous looks and was forced to tell the story over and over again as the garage men were amazed that hail stones could do so much damage.

I was thinking back to that trip when I read the beautiful passage from Isaiah 25 which tells us Our Heavenly Father is a shelter for us in what any form of storm we might be experiencing in our own lives. Storms often come with intensity through adverse circumstances. Sometimes they may entail health problems. Sometimes they may be a financial crisis. Sometimes they may erupt through malicious tongues of some who would like to see those who profess to be Christians, fail. King David was often the object of malice and abuse of those around him, they were jealous of his power and would long to see him fail, but he knew that his best plan was always to seek shelter with his Almighty God.

“I would hurry to my place of shelter, far from the tempest and storm” (Psalm 55:8)

Then and only then he would cry,

“He ransoms me unharmed from the battle waged against me, even though many oppose me” (Psalm 55:18)

Sometimes just sheer exhaustion can feel like a battering of a storm, making one so weary that carrying on seems impossible. A list of tasks to be done can hover like dark clouds, blotting out joy and contentment. When we need shelter and rest the Psalmists knew where to go,

“He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty” (Psalm 91:1)

One of the lessons I learnt in our encounter with that savage storm we experienced, was that during the worst of it, we were blinded to the real danger around us. We neither heard nor saw that semi-trailer which could have so easily hit us except we were under shelter and off the road. The same applies to the storms of life. If we concentrate on the storm itself we may miss the real danger around us. Seeking the wonderful and powerful shelter of the Father’s arms quickly ensures a barrier between us and the storm and then and only then can we deal with the problem.

The comforting thought that we all can cling to, is that the Lord’s shelter is always available. There is no need to make reservations. We do not have to stand in line waiting to see if there is any space. The Lord can deal with any storm known to mankind, we just have to accept his sheltering embrace and listen to his directions as he leads us to safety.

“I long to dwell in your tent forever and take refuge in the shelter of your wings.” (Psalm 61:4)

Related articles

• Finding Safety in the Storm (therisingmuse.com)
• A Sheltered Place – by Jamie Britt (glendamills.com)
• A Mighty Fortress is our God! (cracked-pot.com)