“In God is my salvation and my glory: the rock of my strength, and my refuge, is in God. Trust in him at all times; ye people, pour out your heart before him: God is a refuge for us. Selah” (Psalm 62:7-8).
In salvation I find comfort and love from my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. He is the rock I lean on in times of trouble and glorify in times of joy. He is my refuge and my strength, which I pour out my heart in earnest desire to feel His presence and to hear His voice through the Holy Spirit in times of trouble.
I totally and honestly love the Lord with all my heart. I feel guilty though, a lot, for the sins I continue to do, even though I don’t want to do them, just as the apostle Paul said in Romans 7:15-18:
“For that which I do I allow not: for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I. If then I do that which I would not, I consent unto the law that it is good. Now then it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me. For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not.”
I am by far not a perfect man. I make mistakes every day in thoughts, words and actions the moment I do, I regret it, knowing it was sin in me that took over for that one moment leading me to say, think or do something I knew I shouldn’t have, and I feel like I disappointed the Lord.
Yet I know that God is my salvation and my rock. He is quick to forgive and is steadfast in His love for me, and for you. He loved us so much that He sent His only son down to earth to live with us and teach us of God’s love and then His son, Jesus, died for our sins.
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life” (John 3:16).
What strength and love that is from God, to give His only Son to us, to make a way for us to be connected to God through Jesus’ sacrifice of Himself to forgive our sins? It shows He is a great and loving God. By Jesus’ sacrifice, He made a way, a path for us by grace to have a relationship with Him for everlasting life—as long as we believe, truly believe, that He died and rose from the grave three days later to defeat death and offer us eternity through Him.
Because of His sacrifice, because God loved us so much, I know that He is the rock of my strength, the sturdy hand I can hold to get through each day, each week, and each hour. Without His strength I am just a feather in the wind, letting the wind take me this way and that way with no set destination, just floating through life without direction.
God is the God and ruler of the universe and yet he cares for me, and for you. Each one of us is important to Him. We are the “apple of His eye” in the entire universe, made in the likeness of Him for His pleasure to watch us grow with Him, live for Him and rely on Him to take care of us—to be our refuge in times of trouble and pain, and to share our successes.
Have you ever been in that position? Ever been in so much pain—emotional, physical, etc., that all you could do was cry out to the Lord? Even non-believers cry out to God when in times of trouble, but often they don’t cry for refuge, they cry out of anger thinking that God is the cause of their troubles, when in fact—God can be the refuge for their troubles. God is there to comfort us, to love us, and protect our souls from the troubles of life. All you have to do is believe in Him, that He is real, and that He cares for you unconditionally.
We are not ants that God enjoys stomping on or toying with for His pleasure. Through His grace and power He has breathed life into us by giving us souls with consciousness and morality. God’s signature is written on all our hearts. Whether a believer or not, we all have an inherent knowledge of right or wrong.
Once you find God, once He becomes your mighty rock to hold on to and to stand with, do you find that you are more than flesh and bones with only a knowledge of right or wrong? You become a changed person trusting in the Lord to be there for you in those times of trouble when you can’t bear it on your own.
Once we accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior and pour our hearts out to Him and ask forgiveness of our sins we become true children of God. He becomes our strength and our rock that we can lean on, cling to, in this world we call earth and all the troubles that come with living in this fallen world.
Each one of us faces troubles, some more often than others. We are persecuted in our own ways. People are harsh to us, take advantage of us, do their best to hurt us both emotionally and sometimes, physically. Some people have grown up in abusive homes, some in loving homes. Some people learned that life is about taking care of number one (themselves) and others learned that life is full of opportunities to excel and succeed to gain a name for themselves and to gain as much as they can (such as material goods).
And yes, some people grew up knowing God from an early age. Regardless of your background, regardless of how good or bad your life is, we all face troubles and seek ways to relieve our troubles.
Some people relieve their troubles through revenge. Some find refuge in drugs and alcohol. Some find refuge in sexual escapades. Some find relief and refuge in their careers; the list can go on and on. I propose though, and many have found, that true refuge comes from the strength and grace found in Jesus Christ yes, Jesus Christ.
We can’t see Him, we can’t touch Him, but if you know Him in your heart, you know He is real. He is the rock we can hold on to when we are sinking in the quicksand of life, when we have nowhere else to turn, we can turn to Him. He is there to lift us up, to give us refuge from life’s troubles. Will He solve all your problems? Will He take revenge for you against those that did you wrong? No, but He is there to comfort us and wrap us up with His love to give us assurance that we are being taken care of.
If you have Jesus and take refuge in Him, you see situations differently. Your refuge won’t be the same as it used to be. You can find comfort and joy in the Lord. You find forgiveness to others. You learn to love others, regardless of problems with them. You will look at your troubles and will take refuge in Jesus over all the other ways you tried before.
Again, all your problems won’t be solved, but your attitude toward them will be. By having God as your rock, refuge, and strength, you will have the means to face troubles knowing that God will not forsake you nor abandon you. As Hebrews 12:11 says:
“Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby.”
We can take comfort that our troubles are temporary and occur to bring us closer to Jesus and to help us gain strength in our relationship with Him.
There is a lesson to be learned here. The lesson is if we did not have troubles, if we did not have hard times, if bad things didn’t happen to us, then we wouldn’t need to seek the Lord. Does God throw glass on the floor while you are barefooted just so you will seek Him to avoid the glass?
No. We live in a fallen world full of sin and bad people who are evil and do evil things; people who don’t know our loving Father. But God is there, always, for us to seek the refuge of his protection of our souls and the comfort we need to get through the tough times that life and the world throw at us.
I didn’t believe in Jesus for the first thirty or so years of my life. I believed in a higher power and had my own ideas of what heaven was and how to get there. I also believed that God liked to mess with me by throwing obstacles in my way in life: a bill I couldn’t pay, a person whom I hated, poor health, and a job I despised.
I found refuge and relief in everything but God. I felt that God was pushing me away from Him, that He didn’t want me; that I was so bad He couldn’t love me. What I now know was that God was trying to get my attention through the troubles of my life. He was always there for me, trying to draw me to Him, but I didn’t seek Him. I was relying on myself to solve my problems while God was waiting for me to only just turn to Him and seek Him for strength and refuge from my troubles.
For thirty-plus years, Satan did a good job of keeping me from my Lord and Savior. Grace, I didn’t even know what grace is. I thought it was just a name like my grandmother’s name: Grace. Through great prayer from my family and through the urging of my wife to go to church with her, I began to recognize that God was not who I thought He was.
My heart began to soften and instead of daydreaming at church, I actually began to listen to what the story of salvation is. God began to break through my heart because I changed my attitude from hostility toward God, to wanting to learn more about this God. The God being preached about who is caring, loving, strengthening and, what hit home for me—is that He is a refuge for troubles.
I learned that God was the missing link in my life that I needed to get through my troubles. I realized that through Him, through Jesus Christ, I could find strength and refuge in Him for my troubles. I began to turn to God for strength and comfort. I began to want God in earnest and I got saved and the Holy Spirit became part of my being.
Prior to being saved, I was mostly angry at God for all my health problems. I hated Him for allowing me to have so much trouble with my health, all the ailments I had, all the medicine I was taking, and all the side effects from them: I just despised Him. Then after I was saved, I found that even though I have all these health problems, I could find strength and comfort in God. He became my refuge and strength. And when my health began to get worse, I found comfort in Him and strength in Him to endure.
I found that through my troubles, not only my health troubles, but all sorts of trouble, I could rely on Jesus to be my rock, my strength, and my refuge to seek when I feel overwhelmed by life’s troubles. I found that with my heart changed by accepting Jesus, my troubles did the opposite of what they used to do; instead of pushing me away from God, they brought me closer to God. With Jesus as my strength and refuge, I found in times of trouble, my relationship with Jesus is strengthened, not diminished. Glory to God for this!
For those who are not saved, if you don’t know Jesus, you face the same troubles as the rest of those who are saved and know and have Jesus in their hearts and lives. Troubles will always be there. No matter what you do, don’t do, avoid, or don’t avoid, troubles are always around the corner because we live in a fallen world full of horrible things and people.
Having Jesus in your life as your strength and refuge will change how you look at troubles. You will no longer fear the bad times. You won’t be moved by what wrenches life and the world will through into the gears of your life. Jesus will be there for you, to comfort you and to help you through those rough patches you are going through.
The Holy Spirit will be there to help you work through the tough times. The Holy Spirit will give you the guidance you need, as long as you listen, to get through tough times, troubles, and every other problem thrown your way. All you need to do is accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior and you will attain what a lot of people don’t have: Assurance, refuge, and strength in Christ.
Time is short here on earth. You don’t have much time left to make your choice. If you need motivation to come to Jesus, let your life’s troubles lead you to the cross, to Jesus. Let your guard down, as I did, and be receptive to the words of God and the grace bestowed upon you by the sacrifice Jesus made for you to wash your sins clean.
It took trouble in my life to lead me to Jesus, and I fought and screamed the whole way there. Yet when I finally listened, really listened and took to heart the words I heard about Jesus and the promises He had for me, I was a changed man. I accepted the Lord and have not looked back since. I find His presence comforting, loving, and my soul is happy in the good times and yes, even in the bad times.
This is your time to accept the Lord. Whether you want help with your life’s troubles, you feel emptiness in your heart, or you want to see heaven, Jesus is the way to meet those needs and more.
“(For he saith, I have heard thee in a time accepted, and in the day of salvation have I succoured thee: behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation)” (2 Corinthians 6:2).
Only by accepting Christ as your savior can you attain the life God has planned for you for His good pleasure and yours.
“Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me” (John 14: 6).
God is the mighty rock we can hold on to. Through Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit, you can be assured that whatever you may face in this life, Christ will be there to comfort you and the Holy Spirit will be there to guide you through the tough times in life, the troubles you face, and the adversaries you will meet along the way on the path to heaven.
Trust in God to guide you. Let Him be your mighty rock to stand on to face life with the confidence and assurance of Christ in you and assurance of eternity with Him in heaven.
With all blessings and love,
John_lysaught@yahoo.com
All quoted Scripture is from the King James Version of the Bible