The Fortress - God

Be still, and know that I am God. Psalms 46:10 NIVUK https://bible.com/bible/113/psa.46.10.NIVUK

Verse 10 is significant for three reasons. Firstly, because it's the one time in this psalm where God actually speaks. Secondly, because He speaks to the protagonists - to the forces attacking the believer - and to the believer themselves. Thirdly, because these words have given tremendous comfort to believers through the ages. Martin Luther said these words when life became tough for him: "Let us sing the forty-sixth psalm in concert and then let the devil do his worst." But what could they really mean? How could they be so significant? Verse 10 begins with a resounding shout of pure defiance: "Be still". The Hebrew indicates that it could also mean "Stop!" It's a bit like that shout we either love or hate to hear from an exam invigilator of "Pens and pencils down! The exam is over!" God is telling the forces ranged against His people to stop. Astonishing! But He is also telling our racing, anxious hearts to stop: to calm down, to stop panicking. Why? Because He is God. God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Psalms 46:1 NIVUK https://bible.com/bible/113/psa.46.1.NIVUK

The Lord Almighty is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress. Psalms 46:7 NIVUK https://bible.com/bible/113/psa.46.7.NIVUK

The Lord Almighty is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress. Psalms 46:11 NIVUK https://bible.com/bible/113/psa.46.11.NIVUK

Because God is our refuge. He is where we run to in trouble. Because He is our ever-present help. He will not desert us or abandon us. Because He is with us - that great source of comfort and strength throughout the ages for all God's people. Because He is our fortress. Because He is Almighty. Do you notice something about all of these? Every picture the psalmist gives us here is defensive. We are being attacked. God is our defence. Is that how you feel? Do you feel like life's circumstances are dead against you right now? Then run to God and let Him be your refuge, your ever-present help and fortress. In almost the dead centre of Romania, not far from where I used to live and work, lies a rather famous castle. Bran Castle is both picturesque and historically significant. Tourists swarm there in droves to see it.

The problem is why tourists go there. They go there on the basis of a lie. You see, Bran Castle has been connected for a long time with the story of Count Dracula. It is in Transylvania, but that's beside the point. There are many castles in Transylvania, and some even more beautiful than Bran Castle. But people flock there because of its association with the real-life medieval historical figure on whom the author Bram Stoker based Count Dracula - the rather delightfully named Vlad the Impaler. Just one problem: Vlad the Impaler never lived there. In fact, as the last Queen of Romania, Queen Marie, was born in Edinburgh, was a member of the British royal family and Bran Castle's last resident, the castle has a closer link to the Queen of Great Britain than to Vlad the Impaler People rush to visit Bran Castle on a false pretence. In fact, they even hold annual Halloween parties in the castle, despite the fact its links to Count Dracula are completely tenuous at best. Today, people have been rushing to take shelter from the Coronavirus storm anywhere they can. They cite science, the kindness of human beings, the power of positive thinking, meditation, yoga, exercise... But where has it got us? If any of these things actually work, then why are we sitting on a mental health time-bomb? The truth of this psalm is this: if you want to live life without fear then you need to run to God. Why? Because He is God. He is the ultimate last word in every argument. He is utterly in control. I spent seven years in a school where the kids would do pretty much whatever they liked in the school playground, including fighting and bullying. But when the bell rang and a teacher appeared on the doorstep, it all stopped. This is God. He is calling time on all the forces ranged against us. He is telling then to stop because they know - they really know - just who He is. Ultimately this will happen when God calls time on history. But it can happen right here, right now if you allow God to call time on the worries and anxieties of your own heart by reminding yourself of just who He is. So will you do it, friend? Will you make God your refuge and strength?

In my next post, we'll look at THE NATIONS.