Updated Wednesday, June 18, 2008

Formations lesson for June 29: Seeking Refuge

By R. Kevin Johnson

Focal Passage: Psalm 91

The last couple of weeks, I have been thinking about the many calamities our nation has seen over the past few years. On Sept. 11, 2001, the United States experienced a terrorist attack - an impact many of us still have trouble comprehending. In New Orleans, Hurricane Katrina turned a city into a bathtub, killing numerous citizens and displacing others from their homes and ways of life. Tornados have spun destruction across our country's heartland. Wildfires, fueled by human carelessness and dangerous winds, have burned out of control, leveling the beautiful west-coast landscape and adding to the problem of pollution.

Similar tragedies have afflicted other areas of the world as well. A tsunami devastated South Asian lands. Warfare broke out (and continues) in the Middle East. A cyclone destroyed Myanmar. Drought and famine have devastated African nations. Thirty thousand children around the world die each day from poverty-related disease. Now, a massive earthquake and endless aftershocks have ravaged the Sichuan province of China, destroying homes and killing thousands.

It is hard to understand the intense suffering that occurs in the wake of such events. When faced with hardships beyond our control, humans often ask the question posed in our lesson for today: "Where do I turn for help?" Those who place their trust in the Almighty can find strength and hope in the message of Psalm 91. In a few short verses we learn characteristics of God that will sustain us when we need assurance. God is trustworthy - a refuge and a fortress in time of trouble. He is faithful to deliver us from evil and the pain of difficulty at any time of day or night.

A growing relationship with the Lord allows us to better understand His ways and to submit to Him fully. When we do, His promise is not to remove the trouble; rather it is to be a sustaining presence offering peace and comfort. "Those who love me, I will deliver; I will protect those who know My name. When they call to Me, I will answer them; I will be with them in trouble, I will rescue them and honor them. With long life I will satisfy them, and show them my salvation (v. 14-16)."

When we are faced with tragedies that cause us to ask "Why?" and "Where do I turn for help?" may God give us the grace to claim His promise to deliver His people.