God our fortress – Moment to Moment (Bible blog)

Though our world seems to be falling down around us

God is our refuge and strength,
a helper who is always found
in times of trouble.

Therefore we will not be afraid (Psalm 46:1-2)

How often do we face situations in our lives where we are afraid?

We’re afraid because life seems crazy and out of control.

Or as the psalmist puts it,

the earth trembles
and the mountains topple into the depths of the seas,,,
its water roars and foams
and the mountains quake with its turmoil. (2b-3)

Do you ever feel like the world is like that? Do you ever feel your life is like that?

But the psalmist says in the midst of all the chaos, “We will not be afraid.”

Not because we are strong enough to handle it all. But because we have someone who is far greater than our problems, a Helper who is always found in times of trouble.

And it is because of Him, not because of how strong we are in ourselves, but because of Him, that we will not be afraid.

The psalmist continues,

There is a river—
its streams delight the city of God,
the holy dwelling place of the Most High.

God is within her; she will not be toppled.
God will help her when the morning dawns. (4-5)

The psalmist speaks here of Jerusalem, but it strikes me that as Christians, we ourselves are now the holy dwelling of the Most High.

God dwells within us, and streams of Living Water, the Holy Spirit himself flows within us to refresh and strengthen us. (John 7:38-39)

And because of this, we will not be toppled no matter what happens. God will help us. As Jeremiah wrote,

his mercies never end.
They are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness! (Lamentations 3:22-23)

So often we struggle against our circumstances as if God has left us to flail around on our own.

But God says, “Stop fighting. Stop striving. Be still. Know that I am God.” (10)

So let us exalt him in our lives, as all the earth someday will. (11)

And remember,

The LORD of Armies is with us;
the God of Jacob is our stronghold. (11)

Forgetting God

Out of sight, out of mind.

Unfortunately, for many people, even Christians, this applies to their relationship with God.

We can’t see him physically, and if we’re not actively seeking him, it’s easy to let him slip from our minds. Unless, of course, we get into trouble. Then he quickly roars back to mind, and we cry out, “Help!”

And that was the problem with the Israelites as well. They had allied themselves with false gods in a spiritual sense, and with the Syrians in a political and military one.

And so God condemns them, saying,

You have forgotten God your Savior; you have not remembered the Rock, your fortress. (Isaiah 17:10)

How often do we do the same? Oh, we may not worship Buddha or follow other religions.

But instead of relying on God and making him our rock, we put our trust in money. We put our trust in our possessions. Or we compromise with ungodly people in order to get ahead in our business or in our careers.

But while it may reap benefits in the short term, in the long run, we’ll lose everything. Israel did, as did their allies, the Syrians.

And God said,

In that day, men will look to their Maker and turn their eyes to the Holy One of Israel.

They will not look to the altars and the work of their hands, and they will have no regard for the Asherah poles and the incense altars their fingers have made. (7-8)

How much better would our lives be if instead of waiting for everything to collapse around us, we would remember God here and now? To make him our fortress, not our money. To make him our rock, and not things made or set up by man.