My
Hiding Place
Psalm 32:7
Thou art my hiding place; thou shalt preserve me
from trouble; thou shalt compass me about with songs of deliverance. Selah.
My Experience, Strength
& Hope
I recently heard a new
revelation about these songs of deliverance. It was glorious. I would like to
share it with you. Our pastor is very much led by Holy Spirit in what he
preaches. One day he said that as we sing of the deliverance of the Lord, He is
in those songs and working our deliverance even as we sing of it. Isn’t that
glorious?! I was very excited to hear that – how about you? Do you know that
Jesus can deliver you even as you sing of His deliverance? Do you know that He
inhabits (takes up residence in) your praises?
We are looking at hiding
places. As an addict, people can look for lots of places to hide. They hide
from stress, abuse, and a host of other worldly troubles. When we hide
ourselves in Jesus, we can be preserved from trouble. That means every kind of
trouble. When a person who has been addicted to something runs to Him, He will
hide them from the trouble that addiction brings. It is true. I have seen Him
do it for me. Lately I have seen the results of what it really means to hide
oneself in the Lord. I am in a new season of victory in my life and I give Him
all the praise and glory for that. That’s why I am excited to share it with
you. Freely I have received – freely I give.
It's all about focus.
What we think about, what we talk about, and how we act are all ways that
reflect what will happen in our day to day activities. If we focus on the food
for example and hide ourselves in that, we will remain ensnared by it. But when
we run to Jesus and hide there; remain with Him and focus on Him, we can be
free of that thing, whatever it may be.
There are a lot of
things vying for our attention in this world that are not of God. We have a
choice every moment of the day. Do we focus on the things of this world, or do
we focus on Jesus and remain in Him – hidden away from the trouble that
addictive behaviors can bring? The choice is ours.
Remember when you were
young. Maybe you liked to play hide and go seek. You were so excited to go find
that special place to tuck yourself into where nobody could find you. Or maybe
you liked to build a treehouse, or a fort in the woods. I did a lot of that as
a young girl. Ok, a bit of a tomboy, but so what. I enjoyed it. It was a way of
hiding from the troubles going on in my home.
When I was in the fort
with my friends, I felt safe and secure. Or when I would climb a tall tree,
which I really enjoyed doing – the higher up the better, I would feel like I
didn’t have a care in the world as I gazed down at the earth below. I even used
to like to climb up on top of our refrigerator at home and just look down at
everything. I liked being up there. It felt safe and peaceful. Having a place
to go hide can be a very secure thing for anybody. But the hiding place must be
right, or our efforts are in vain.
Stuffing our mouths with
food is no place to hide. Drinking a bottomless bottle of booze is also a false
‘fort’. No matter where we have run to in the past to hide, we can run to the
Savior right now and hide ourselves in Him. There is a picture online that is
one of my favorites. It reminds me of Psalm 91 which is a good reflection of
hiding in the Lord. In fact, we will use that Psalm in this message. In the
picture, a beautifully colored bird is nesting her two babies underneath her
large, comforting wings. They look so safe and happy there.
My friend,
we may think we are ‘hiding out’ when we are alone in our houses or cars; wherever
we may be as we cram down volumes of food, alcohol or drugs - but trouble is
right there with us when we are doing that. The enemy is in the middle of all
that. It is a wide-open door for the enemy to steal, kill and destroy. It is no
safe haven – I assure you. It’s a fort with paper thin walls that will not
stand.
But when we
hide ourselves in the sweet arms of Jesus, trusting in Him to protect us and
feed our longing souls, then the enemy cannot enter into our ‘forts’, aka, our
hearts. The doors are barricaded shut against him. Like the big bad wolf, he
may huff and puff, but he can’t get in. The walls will remain strong and
intact. He will not succeed in blowing our forts down because we are dwelling
in the secret place of the Most High. May you be encouraged today to just go to
Him. Cry if you have to. But rest in Him, trust Him to calm, relieve and
refresh you – and He will, I promise, because He promises. Praise His name
forever!
Psalm 91:1-4
He that dwelleth in the secret
place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say
of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in
him will I trust. Surely he shall deliver thee from the
snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence. He shall cover thee with
his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy
shield and buckler.
Scriptures from This Message…
Jeremiah 23:24
Can any hide himself in secret places that I shall not see him? saith
the Lord.
Do not I fill heaven and earth? saith the Lord.
Psalm 17:6-9
I have called upon thee, for thou wilt hear me,
O God: incline thine ear unto me, and hear my speech. Shew thy marvellous
lovingkindness, O thou that savest by thy right hand them which put their trust
in thee from those that rise up against them. Keep me as the apple of the eye,
hide me under the shadow of thy wings, From the wicked that oppress me, from my
deadly enemies, who compass me about.
Psalm 27:5
For in the time of trouble he shall hide me in his pavilion: in the
secret of his tabernacle shall he hide me; he shall set me up upon a rock.
Psalm 57:1
Be merciful unto me, O God, be merciful unto me: for my soul trusteth in
thee: yea, in the shadow of thy wings will I make my refuge, until these
calamities be overpast.
John 15:1-11
I am the true vine, and my Father
is the husbandman. Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch
that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit. Now ye
are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you.
Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot
bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye
abide in me. I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I
in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.
If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and
men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned. If ye abide
in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be
done unto you.
Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear
much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples. As the Father hath loved me, so have I
loved you: continue ye in my love. If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide
in my love; even as I have kept my Father's commandments, and abide in his love.
These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that
your joy might be full.
Colossians
3:1-3
If ye then be risen with Christ,
seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of
God. Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. For ye are
dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God.
Psalm 61:4
I will abide in Your tabernacle forever; I will trust in the shelter of Your
wings. Selah
Thoughts to Meditate On:
What to Do…
·
Cry if you have to, but
don’t stay there any longer than is necessary to get what’s bugging you out.
·
Rest in Jesus’ arms.
·
Trust Him – really trust
Him.
What We Get in Return…
·
Encouraged
·
Relieved
·
Refreshed
This week, write down
how this message ministered to you the most. Get out things that you know are
bothering you right now. Take it to the Lord in prayer. Start reading Psalm 91
out loud every day until you start to really get it down deep into your heart.
Keep it where you can see it often. Rejoice in how much God loves you and wants
to comfort and heal you. Allow Him time to do the work in you and allow
yourself time to rest in Him. Be patient with yourself. Remember that no strong
house was built in a day, a week or even a month. This is a lifelong process.
If you would like to join our weekly call, please send an email to the following:
The3rdJohn2Program@yahoo.com
Be blessed!
Hanny Stearns
No comments:
Post a Comment