Psalm 46: In the Shelter of Faith's Still Small Voice

"God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble"

Psalm 46 assures us with its opening words that God never deserts us. When troubles assail us, God's presence offers us refuge and imparts strength to us.

"though the earth be removed. . .though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea. . .though the waters thereof roar and be troubled, though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof"

The magnitude of God's commitment to our safety is emphasized in the second and third verses against the backdrop of nature's horrifying devastations. Earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions, and hurricanes may thunder across this planet but God's presence is more powerful and removes our fears.

At first glance and even after numerous glances, these two verses puzzle. The first decade of the twenty-first century has witnessed global calamities on terrifying scales of destruction and misery. Our planet's physical wounds have not yet healed from earlier catastrophes --- 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami; Hurricane Katrina in 2005 --- and yet nature continues its furious roam, raging in Haiti, Chile, China, Iceland. Accompanying this vast geographical damage are fatalities and injuries to people, communities, animals, etc. Human injuries encompass all levels of our existence, from physical to mental to emotional to spiritual.

"we will not fear"

And fear is not expected to be factored into any of this? How can that be?

As admitted in these first three verses, we do not live in a perpetual paradise. Trouble takes many forms, from geographical disasters to personal tragedies, and assiduously tries to attach itself to our lives. Sometimes we seem deluged with troubles. These unwelcome trials have the power to blacken our outlook just as volcanic ash is able to blot out light from the sun and our moon.

The landscapes of darkness suffocate all hope through unabated fear and anger, two of our greatest enemies. Anger distorts our will and fear paralyzes it. So the way out of darkness is to overcome fear and anger. A first step is to acknowledge our susceptibility to these emotions which are part of our psyche. A problem is solved by confronting it, not by avoiding or suppressing it. The negative aspects of any emotion take hold when we stagnate in it. Vulnerability dissipates with acceptance, which does not have to entail resignation.

Just as we find peace through forgiving even the seemingly unforgivable, we are strengthened immeasurably by relinquishing fear's hold upon us. Fear is overcome by faith, which sees beyond the visible to the invisible. Faith is a refuge and a strength.

"There is a river, the streams whereof make glad the city of God, the holy place of the tabernacles of the most High. . . .The nations rage, the kingdoms totter: He lifts up His voice, the earth melts"

The shift from fear to faith is echoed in the shift in imagery from the first three verses to the next three verses [4 through 6]. We behold a river with streams that gladden the city of God. In contrast to the deafening roars of hurricanes and tsunamis, this water is peaceful. A similar transition occurs when fear is transformed into faith. The fearful mind suffers unimaginable torments and is ravaged by insecurity whereas faith stills troubled waters and softens even ragged landscapes with its calm perspective.

Although it is sometimes unsettling to ponder or confront the vicissitudes of planetary life, we are ennobled by transcending fear. Thereby we progress to a higher and more proactive realm. We consider what has befallen us and, guided by the calm clarity of faith, we are in the proper frame of mind to consider appropriate, effective solutions.

"The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. . . .He makes wars to cease unto the end of the earth; he breaks the bow and shatters the spear; he burns the chariot in the fire"

Verses 7 through 9 reiterate the promise of God as an omnipresent refuge in our lives. God brings an end to desolations. God stills the raging nations, the tottering kingdoms. This is not the still before the storm, which often has an eerie beauty. This is the stillness which is not completely still, the stillness of harmony. God's presence is revealed in the stilling of chaos.

"Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth"

Verse 10 declares, "Be still, and know that I am God." This identification of God with the emergence of stillness from chaos is reminiscent of the cherished passage in I Kings 19: 11-12:

And he said, Go forth, and stand upon the mount before the Lord. And, behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and broke in pieces the rocks before the Lord; but the Lord was not in the wind: and after the wind an earthquake; but the Lord was not in the earthquake:

And after the earthquake a fire; but the Lord was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice.

This still small voice traces back to the gentle command that lightened the darkness of creation. This still small voice inheres in our awesome universe to this day, tomorrow, forever. This still small voice empowers us, protects us, guides us. Listening to this still small voice, we "go from strength to strength" and, passing through a desert wilderness, we "make it a place of springs" [Psalm 84: 6-7]. In other words, faith navigates us so seeming difficulties do not entangle us. This still small voice of faith does shelter us from life's storms.

And as the last verse of Psalm 46 affirms, through this still small voice which we hear through faith, we know that "the Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge."

The next time that your world shakes, faintly or dramatically, physically or emotionally or spiritually, seek the shelter of faith's still small voice. You will feel and see the difference, for as the stillness "lifts up His voice, the earth melts" [Psalm 46: 6].

God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.

Therefore we will not fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea;

Though the waters thereof roar and be troubled, though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof. Selah.

There is a river, the streams whereof make glad the city of God, the holy place of the tabernacles of the most High.

God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved: God shall help her, and that right early.

The nations rage, the kingdoms totter: He lifts up His voice, the earth melts.

The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah.

Come, behold the works of the Lord, what desolations he has made in the earth.

He makes wars to cease unto the end of the earth; he breaks the bow and shatters the spear; he burns the chariot in the fire.

"Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.

The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge.'"Selah

Copyright April 24, 2010 by Stessily