Sermon Central
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He Is My Place Of Refuge
Contributed by Dr. Odell Belger on Apr 29, 2022 (message contributor)
Summary: Generally when we are hurt, we have a place of refuge that we flee too. That place of refuge is generally one of four places.
(1) WE MIGHT FLEE TO A PARENT. For those of us who are
blessed to still have our parents around, we may FLEE TO THEM in times of difficulty.
Why? Because, when we face the difficulties of life, we want to have someone on our side, and we know that our parents will always be there for us.
Illus: A crowd stood on the outside of a prison, waiting for the execution of a serial killer to take place. Angry people stood with placards that read, “Fry him!”, and “Kill him!” But off to the side of the protesters was a woman, standing practically alone, with a handkerchief in her hand, and with tears streaming down her face as she was telling a reporter, “They do not know my son, he is not as bad as they say he is.”
We all know that our parents are on our side, and we generally FLEE to them, because we know if no one else will be on our side, they will be. WE MIGHT FLEE TO A PARENT and then-
(2) WE MIGHT FLEE TO A PAL. We go and see them, and pour our hearts out to them, because we do not want to face the problem we are facing alone.
Illus: Scott Peck, in Leadership magazine, said, “Often the most loving thing we can do when a friend is in pain, is to share the pain--to be there even when we have nothing to offer except our presence, and even when being there is painful to ourselves.” - M. Scott Peck. Leadership, Vol. 15, no. 2.
HAVE YOU EVER WONDERED HOW MANY FRIENDS YOU HAVE?
If you really want to know who your friends are, look around you when things are going rough. It will be your friends that will surround you. Proverbs 17:17, We read, “A friend loveth at all times...”
What a joy it is to have a friend today, and to know that we will still have that same friend tomorrow. Truly the Word of God is right, “A friend loveth at all times”. Not just sometimes, when it is convenient or beneficial, but ALL TIMES.
And when things start to go hard for us, and we need a place of refuge, we waste no time seeking out people that we know to be our friends.
When difficulties come, WE MIGHT FLEE TO A PARENT, or WE MIGHT FLEE TO A PAL. But also-
(3) WE MIGHT FLEE TO A PLACE. Many of us have a place of refuge that we flee to in times of sorrow. We can be burdened down with the cares of this world, and escape to some isolated place with nature, and it is amazing how our large problems can diminish so fast. Many times this is even better than fleeing to a friend.
Why? Because a friend might mean well, but they might give us some bad advice, and not know they are doing it.
However, many times when we can get alone in some isolated place, and take the good brain God gave us, and begin to think with it, things begin to clear themselves up.
When difficulties come, WE MIGHT FLEE TO A PARENT, WE MIGHT FLEE TO A PAL, or WE MIGHT FLEE TO A PLACE, but also -
(4) WE MIGHT FLEE TO A PERSON. The psalmist knew that person to be the Lord Jesus.
The Psalmist had a place of refuge that a lot of folks do not know anything about. He mentions this twice in this Psalm:
• In Verse 2, We read, “I will say of the LORD, He is MY REFUGE AND MY FORTRESS: my God; in him will I trust.”
• In Verse 9, We read, “Because thou hast made the LORD, which is MY REFUGE, even the most High, thy habitation.”
The greatest place we can go when we face difficulty, is to the Lord Jesus. THE LORD IS OUR REFUGE! He is our place of protection when we are confronted with danger. We all need to find this place of refuge we have in the Lord. Why? Because we all face:
I. Times of Destitution.
Through the ages, God’s people have suffered in so many ways. Look at Hebrews 11:37, We read, “They were stoned, they were sawn asunder, were tempted, were slain with the sword: they wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins; being destitute, afflicted, tormented.”
People live in destitution in two ways. For example, some live in destitution when it comes to-
(1) MATERIAL THINGS. That is, they live their whole life and
do not have a thing to show for it…HOW SAD!
Destitution comes to us in many ways, such as:
• A LIFE OF SIN
Perhaps through booze, drugs, and gambling they have been stripped of the fine cars, clothes and the beautiful home they once had. When they die, no one has to be concerned with going to a probate judge to divide their wealth, because when they are buried, practically everything they own will be buried with them.
