21 Days of Prayer – Day 18

Psalm 118:8-9
8. It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in people. 9. It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in princes.

Where do you go first in times of need? When you have a problem arise, who is the first to know? Who is the first you go to for a solution or help? There is nothing wrong with going to your family, friends or the family of God but as this scripture indicates, it’s much better to take refuge in the Lord! He should be the FIRST place we go in times of need and trouble. Many times it’s the opposite and after we’ve texted every friend we have and put out a Facebook status that falls flat, He becomes our last resort. We wouldn’t say that out loud but our actions and heart expose where our trust really lies. We trust in the natural, man-made solutions rather than taking shelter in God.

Psalm 118:14-17
14. The Lord is my strength and my song; he has given me victory. 15. Songs of joy and victory are sung in the camp of the godly. The strong right arm of the Lord has done glorious things! 16. The strong right arm of the Lord is raised in triumph. The strong right arm of the Lord has done glorious things! 17. I will not die; instead, I will live to tell what the Lord has done.

This set of scriptures a few verses later is the result of the Lord being our refuge! Notice how many times strength or strong is mentioned here! Where we go in times of need reveals what or who we trust. If we really believe that God is our strength, He should be our very FIRST go-to. In fact, if we go to Him first, we may find that we don’t need to go anywhere else!

When God is truly our refuge, we can sing with conviction the song we recently did at church:

“Your Name, is a strong and mighty tower
Your Name, is a shelter like no other
Your Name, let the nations sing it louder
‘Cause nothing has the power to save, but Your Name”

AMEN!

– Pastor Shawn