February 12, 2002
Little Beth likes to hide from her mother. She crawls under a bed or behind the clothes in a closet and almost holds her breath when she hears her mother looking for her. This cute behavior is not so cute when the family is shopping. Beth finds a rack of clothes or a counter and crawls in to hide. Her parents become frantic. No matter how much they call or what they say, Beth sits quietly until they discover her hiding place.
When my children were small, they often ran ahead of me. No matter how I called, they kept going, but when I turned and began walking the other direction, they panicked. Instead of continuing to tease me, they became fearful. They thought I was leaving them so turned around and ran as fast as they could to catch up to me.
Supposedly, we are born with only two fears: falling and loud noises. If it were not for children like Beth, we could add the fear of abandonment. Nevertheless, this fear might not be innate, but most of us pick it up fairly soon.
Actually, fearing that people will abandon us has a positive potential. For one thing, it motivates us to build close relationships. We do not want to be left alone. Our nature as human beings tends toward gregariousness. We may learn to fear people and fear being hurt, but we still want to draw close to others. Even Beth loves the care and attention her parents give her.
Adam and Eve enjoyed a close relationship with each other too. The Bible says they were “naked and not ashamed.” They had nothing to fear so they never hid anything from each other. They also had a close, fearless relationship with God, but that was before sin entered the picture. After that, they were afraid of God. Genesis tells how it happened and how they tried to hide from Him.
The rest of Scripture shows how we have playing that same game since Eden. On one hand, we want to bring ourselves, our problems and our sins to the only One who truly accepts us as we are. On the other hand, we do not want His help us with our problems nor do we want to admit we have sin and need forgiveness, so we hide from God.
The hiding places are imaginative. Some people decide God does not exist, making Him easy to avoid; for them, He is not real. Like children, they shut their eyes and think that makes them invisible and God too. Others hide by saying God does not care, so they can dismiss their sin, or rename it. They are free to do whatever they wish. If He is not concerned, why should they care?
People hide behind masks too. Pretend I am strong; I don’t need help. Pretend I am righteous; I don’t need grace. Pretend I never make mistakes; I don’t need forgiveness. Or pretend I am religious . . .
All religious systems have rules and keeping them supposedly pleases God. Hiding in a religion makes us appear to be close to God and if we can pick a religion with rules compatible to our comfort zone, we can hide from God and yet not appear to be hiding.
The gospel unmasks and uncovers our hiding places, even the religious ones. It says no one is saved by good deeds, rule-keeping, or being “saintly” because God is not impressed. He sees the heart and His standard is Christ. Do we dare measure ourselves against Jesus?
None of what we do either brings us into a relationship with Him or hides us from Him. As the psalmist says, “Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence?”
Instead of hiding from Him, God invites us to hide in Him. Lord, my favorite chorus combines two verses from Your Word: “You are my hiding place, You always fill my heart with songs of deliverance, whenever I am afraid, I will trust in You . . .”
Like a loving parent, He never stops longing for us to stop running away and come to Him. Regardless of whatever we fear or want to cover up, we can hide ourselves in His love.
Showing posts with label hiding place. Show all posts
Showing posts with label hiding place. Show all posts
Monday, May 21, 2018
Monday, March 6, 2017
A Perfect Place to Hide ................ Parables 558
June 10, 1997
Since January, residents of Bangladesh, Tonga, Papua New Guinea, Fiji and Madagascar have endured tropical cyclones. Madagascar was double-whammied by an invasion of locusts.
Floods made headlines in several places such as Winnipeg and the Midwestern States, also including China, Afghanistan, Tanzania, Ecuador, Bolivia, Mozambique and Malawi. Also in the past five months, drought struck Ethiopia, Ecuador (also flooded) and Kenya. Earthquakes rocked Iran, Trinidad and Tobago, China, Iran and Peru. Because of these disasters, many people died.
Weather is not the only calamity that hits unexpectedly, taking or changing lives. Traffic accidents, cancer, heart disease also takes their toll. Consider Mark O’Brien. Struck by polio forty years ago, O’Brien lives in an iron lung. Without it, he would not survive, nor would the 118 others who call one of these contraptions home. Even at that, if there were a better place to find protection, all 119 would want it. For them, this machine is both a refuge and a prison.
Polio victims are not the only people who need a refuge. All of us experience difficulties that we cannot handle by ourselves. Sometimes we look for hiding places or shelter when we are in danger or when our world spins out of control.
When calamities happen, many look to God. The psalmist wrote, “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.”
The psalmist believed God was always ready to help him. Even if the world was falling apart, he knew that he could find a sense of security in the Lord.
Perhaps it was this psalm that prompted the winning entry for a painting depicting “peace.” The artist thought that a calm sea or a lazy meadow would not make the statement he wanted to make. Instead, he painted a severe storm with threatening waves of the sea crashing against a cliff. In the center, sheltered in the cleft of a rock, he placed a bird on her nest, calm and safe in the middle of the turmoil.
The Apostle Paul knew inner peace is possible in outward difficulties. He wrote, “We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.” He explains, “We do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”
Paul knew God is in control. He also knew God uses all things to shape the character of His people, to help them become more like His Son. With that in mind, the tough things in life did not get him down or rob him of his hope. He was able to persevere through them.
When we put our faith in Christ, we too can know God as our refuge in the midst of life’s storms. His Spirit and His presence become a comfort, His truth a peaceful resting place.
Since January, residents of Bangladesh, Tonga, Papua New Guinea, Fiji and Madagascar have endured tropical cyclones. Madagascar was double-whammied by an invasion of locusts.
Floods made headlines in several places such as Winnipeg and the Midwestern States, also including China, Afghanistan, Tanzania, Ecuador, Bolivia, Mozambique and Malawi. Also in the past five months, drought struck Ethiopia, Ecuador (also flooded) and Kenya. Earthquakes rocked Iran, Trinidad and Tobago, China, Iran and Peru. Because of these disasters, many people died.
Weather is not the only calamity that hits unexpectedly, taking or changing lives. Traffic accidents, cancer, heart disease also takes their toll. Consider Mark O’Brien. Struck by polio forty years ago, O’Brien lives in an iron lung. Without it, he would not survive, nor would the 118 others who call one of these contraptions home. Even at that, if there were a better place to find protection, all 119 would want it. For them, this machine is both a refuge and a prison.
Polio victims are not the only people who need a refuge. All of us experience difficulties that we cannot handle by ourselves. Sometimes we look for hiding places or shelter when we are in danger or when our world spins out of control.
When calamities happen, many look to God. The psalmist wrote, “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.”
The psalmist believed God was always ready to help him. Even if the world was falling apart, he knew that he could find a sense of security in the Lord.
Perhaps it was this psalm that prompted the winning entry for a painting depicting “peace.” The artist thought that a calm sea or a lazy meadow would not make the statement he wanted to make. Instead, he painted a severe storm with threatening waves of the sea crashing against a cliff. In the center, sheltered in the cleft of a rock, he placed a bird on her nest, calm and safe in the middle of the turmoil.
The Apostle Paul knew inner peace is possible in outward difficulties. He wrote, “We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.” He explains, “We do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”
Paul knew God is in control. He also knew God uses all things to shape the character of His people, to help them become more like His Son. With that in mind, the tough things in life did not get him down or rob him of his hope. He was able to persevere through them.
When we put our faith in Christ, we too can know God as our refuge in the midst of life’s storms. His Spirit and His presence become a comfort, His truth a peaceful resting place.
Friday, May 1, 2015
My Fortress .............. Parables 268
May 22, 1991
Heidelberg Castle towers high on the south bank of the Neckar River. Once the home of the elected princes of Germany, it is a huge fortress designed to protect its inhabitants from enemies who sought their life, liberty and land. It was seldom conquered.
Bob and I scaled several hundred stone steps from an underground parking lot to the courtyard, went through massive gates, crossed the wooden bridge over a dry moat and entered another time frame. Here monarchs once traded their daughters for political favors and princes protected their reign with lances and shields. We could almost hear the swish of royal robes, the clattering hooves of war horses and the slosh of wooden pails dropping into the courtyard well to draw water for their thirst. Psalm 18 came easily to mind: “The Lord is my rock and my fortress... in whom I take refuge... my stronghold.. and I am saved from my enemies.”
Twenty-six times the psalms describe God as a fortress, a strong tower, a place of refuge where His children can seek shelter from their enemies. Heidelberg Castle made all those metaphors visible. Surely our God is like that immense fortress.
The Bible makes it clear our real enemies are not human. Instead, they are called “principalities and powers” (referring to demonic spirits) who appeal to our sinful desires, selfish attitudes, and godless motives. These enemies seek our allegiance, affections, and attention. They may not bear arms we can see with our eyes, but we are often victims of their attacks.
When I was a new Christian, my God protected me from those dangers. I was not aware they existed. As I gained knowledge of spiritual forces and the power of my enemies, He showed me His provision: spiritual armor and weapons and how to use them. I’ve been strengthened by spiritual battles.
However, other dangers threatened -- one of which was like the danger that caused many nobles to lose their life, liberty and land to the enemy; I began to think I was invincible. Nothing could defeat me. After all, my weapons were His weapons and they were very effective. However, God had another battle strategy to teach me -- the lesson of the strong fortress.
He allowed an attack from a totally unexpected direction. It was a powerful assault, almost shattering my allegiance and affection for God because it seemed His weapons had failed me. It also diverted my attention from serving Him to counting my losses. All seemed destroyed.
But the Fortress still stood. Instead of bleeding to death on the battle field, God called me to run to Him, take refuge within His strong walls of love and protection, snuggle in safety hiding there, and let Him take the enemy fire.
Some may call it retreating to regroup but that is not the purpose of a fortress. The castles of Europe were not a place of retreat but a harbor of defense, a fortress of deliverance. So is God. In Him I can hide and heal, while He shields me from enemy fire. His weapons didn’t let me down; He just wanted me to know that the weapons are not the main protection -- He is.
Heidelberg Castle was not invincible. Louis XIV’s gunpowder blew apart two of its towers; the split-off pieces remain today as reminders. But my Tower, the Christian’s Mighty Fortress, cannot be destroyed. He remains forever a strong place of refuge for all those who rely on His loving protection.
Heidelberg Castle towers high on the south bank of the Neckar River. Once the home of the elected princes of Germany, it is a huge fortress designed to protect its inhabitants from enemies who sought their life, liberty and land. It was seldom conquered.
Bob and I scaled several hundred stone steps from an underground parking lot to the courtyard, went through massive gates, crossed the wooden bridge over a dry moat and entered another time frame. Here monarchs once traded their daughters for political favors and princes protected their reign with lances and shields. We could almost hear the swish of royal robes, the clattering hooves of war horses and the slosh of wooden pails dropping into the courtyard well to draw water for their thirst. Psalm 18 came easily to mind: “The Lord is my rock and my fortress... in whom I take refuge... my stronghold.. and I am saved from my enemies.”
Twenty-six times the psalms describe God as a fortress, a strong tower, a place of refuge where His children can seek shelter from their enemies. Heidelberg Castle made all those metaphors visible. Surely our God is like that immense fortress.
The Bible makes it clear our real enemies are not human. Instead, they are called “principalities and powers” (referring to demonic spirits) who appeal to our sinful desires, selfish attitudes, and godless motives. These enemies seek our allegiance, affections, and attention. They may not bear arms we can see with our eyes, but we are often victims of their attacks.
When I was a new Christian, my God protected me from those dangers. I was not aware they existed. As I gained knowledge of spiritual forces and the power of my enemies, He showed me His provision: spiritual armor and weapons and how to use them. I’ve been strengthened by spiritual battles.
However, other dangers threatened -- one of which was like the danger that caused many nobles to lose their life, liberty and land to the enemy; I began to think I was invincible. Nothing could defeat me. After all, my weapons were His weapons and they were very effective. However, God had another battle strategy to teach me -- the lesson of the strong fortress.
He allowed an attack from a totally unexpected direction. It was a powerful assault, almost shattering my allegiance and affection for God because it seemed His weapons had failed me. It also diverted my attention from serving Him to counting my losses. All seemed destroyed.
But the Fortress still stood. Instead of bleeding to death on the battle field, God called me to run to Him, take refuge within His strong walls of love and protection, snuggle in safety hiding there, and let Him take the enemy fire.
Some may call it retreating to regroup but that is not the purpose of a fortress. The castles of Europe were not a place of retreat but a harbor of defense, a fortress of deliverance. So is God. In Him I can hide and heal, while He shields me from enemy fire. His weapons didn’t let me down; He just wanted me to know that the weapons are not the main protection -- He is.
Heidelberg Castle was not invincible. Louis XIV’s gunpowder blew apart two of its towers; the split-off pieces remain today as reminders. But my Tower, the Christian’s Mighty Fortress, cannot be destroyed. He remains forever a strong place of refuge for all those who rely on His loving protection.
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