Promises in the PsalmsNäide

Promises: God is my Refuge

Have you ever felt weak? Inadequate? Not sure you can hold on? That’s how David was feeling when he wrote Psalm 61.

Psalm 61:1-3
Hear my cry, O God; listen to my prayer. From the ends of the earth I call to you, I call as my heart grows faint; lead me to the rock that is higher than I. For you have been my refuge, a strong tower against the foe.

Something was going on in David’s life that caused him to cry out to God. He needed God to hear and answer his prayer. David’s soul was weary. His strength was giving out. He needed God to lead him to a higher place, a place of safety. Now here’s the question: How did David know that God could do that? He knew because of God’s faithful work in the past.

David’s prayer for God to work in the present is based on David’s experience of God’s faithfulness in the past. David said, “For you have been my refuge.” God has demonstrated his protection. God has been “a strong tower against the foe.” God has delivered David before, so he knows that God can do it again.

Trusting God is not based on an unwarranted hope or an unproven trust. The courage to move forward with God today is based on our experience that he was with us yesterday. The strength to trust God today comes from the experience of his demonstrated trustworthiness yesterday. We can say, “God you have been” therefore, “you will always be.”

Father, right now I am reminded of the ways you have been faithful to me in the past (make a list of how God has worked in your life). Based on what you have done I am crying out for your help today. I am confident that you will come to my aid and lead me to the rock that is higher than I. In Jesus’ name. Amen.