I
was cranky for most of the day today and I have no idea why. It was just one of those days where I felt
enclosed by a variety of things and the way I can tend to react to those times
is just retreat. Most times when I get
into that mode, I feel like I need to be rescued … rescued from the
encasement. Often, that encasement is of
my own making.
During
my daily reading this week through Numbers 22 – 28, Psalms 139 – 145, and 2
Kings 13 - 19, I was reminded of a time when David was stuck in an encasement …
a cave. In his case, he was hiding from
the lunatic King Saul who was on the hunt for David.
In
Psalm 142, we read …
I cry out to the Lord; I plead for the Lord’s
mercy. I pour out my complaints before
him and tell him all my troubles. When I
am overwhelmed, you alone know the way I should turn. Wherever I go, my enemies have set traps for
me. I look for someone to come and help
me, but no one gives me a passing thought!
No one will help me; no one cares a bit what happens to me. Then I pray to you, O Lord. I say, “You are my place of refuge. You are all I really want in life. Hear my cry, for I am very low. Rescue me from my persecutors, for they are
too strong for me. Bring me out of
prison so I can thank you. The godly
will crowd around me, for you are good to me.
David
was literally in a cave, hiding for his life from a king who wanted him
dead. He was in mortal danger and was in
a place where the world literally felt like it was encroaching on his ability
to breathe. In fact, the very person
from whom he was hiding found him in that cave.
The anxiety and fear that was gripping him as he ran to safety was only
budding more and more. In fairness, that
was NOT my situation today. Few of us
ever experience that real sort of suffocating pressure, fear or stress.
But
life does dole out its strain and anxiety.
Sometimes it’s immense to the point of near-paralysis, and other times
it’s just enough to put us in a crabby mood.
Admittedly, most of the time for me … I just get crabby (ask Helen …
haha).
Let’s
set aside for the moment the fact that most of the time the situations we let
hang us up are insignificant at best … innocuous circumstances that we nurture,
water, fertilize (word chosen purposely) into giant seemingly world-ending
events. In short, we make mountains out
of mole hills and seek out the first cave we can climb into. Whether the occurrences are real or
contrived, David’s words in Psalm 142 provide hope for us … a rescue rope to
pull us out of the cave.
Who
did David acknowledge from the get-go that he needed to reach out to in his
anguish? He said, “I cry out to the
LORD.” No matter where we are … or how
real or imagined our state of affairs might be … God is there for us to “pour
out [our] complaints before him and tell him all [our] troubles.” He reminds us, “when I am overwhelmed, You
alone know the way I should turn.” David
was in hiding for his life and he was wise enough … even in his youth … to know
that God was the first person he should seek out, not the help of last resort
like many of us do.
I
love watching the show Survivorman. Les Stroud, the star of the show is
astoundingly able to survive in the craziest places and under the most
unbelievable circumstances. For him,
during a survival situation, a cave is a haven.
It provides protection and cover from the elements. However, a cave in and of itself is
insufficient to provide long-term care and sustenance. In the same way, the cave for David’s hiding,
and the caves we construct for ourselves, cannot provide for us provision or
nourishment forever. For this reason,
David reached out to God, and by virtue of his words, he admonishes us to do
the same. I love how David expresses
this in the Psalm: “You are my place of
refuge. You are all I really want in
life. Hear my cry, for I am very
low. Rescue me from my persecutors, for
they are too strong for me. Bring me out
of prison so I can thank you.”
God
wants to be our hiding place, our place of protection. Not just for the short-term, but for
good. Not just in times of trouble, but
always. Not just in (seemingly) little
affairs, but in the grand schemes of life.
Not just to the kings, the privileged, the “holy”, but to all His
creation and those of us that call Him our Lord.
No
matter what mood you’re in, or how heavy the weight of the world may seem,
don’t run to your cave. It might seem
like a comfortable place, but it won’t last.
It can’t provide for you over the long haul … its protection and cover
only last a short while. God wants us to
run to Him, and for us to allow him to be our cover and protection always. Retreating may seem to be the safe thing to
do, but the things we’re running from will ultimately find us there too. When we run to the Lord, His cover and safety
is lasting. The things that trouble or
irk us can’t survive. God will solve all
and provide peace, because, “You are good to me.”
Let’s
ask the Lord to reveal to us this week the caves we’re running to and hiding in
… and let’s ask Him to remind us that only His care and fortification is
lasting. Think about committing some or
all of Psalm 142 to memory so that you’ll forever be able to draw comfort from
God’s word.
Either
way, run away from the cave and to the source of REAL safety!
Secure
in Christ,
MR