“The Hiding Place”
“Protect me like the pupil of your eye, hide me in
the shadow of your wings from the wicked, who are
assailing me, from my deadly enemies, who are all
around me.”
(Psalm 17:8-9 Complete Jewish Bible)
“On hearing about this, Yeshua left in a boat to
be by himself in the wilderness. But the people
learned of it and followed him from the towns
by land.” (Matthew 14:3, Complete Jewish Bible)
Dear family of friends,
As I know I have, I believe you at times too just
want to run away from a given situation. Someone is attacking you in word,
deed, or any other method under the sun that man thinks of. You just want to
run from it. Get away and hide.
Whether it is the company boss pressing down hard on
you at work; the family member railing against you once again for some incident
that happened days, months or even years ago; the news anchor telling all about the
terrible crimes happening in the world today; or your loving little kids, old enough to scream and run around, but not yet fully understanding their mom's need for rest - you just want to run and hide sometimes, and
get away from it all. At least for a few minutes, right?!
Don Moen, one of my all-time worship leaders, came
out with a CD in 2006 entitled “The
Hiding Place.” It was another one of those that got worn out, as much as
CDs can. The title song, of the same name, particularly struck “a chord” in my
heart, and the Lord used it to bring encouragement and comfort during that
time.
The first lines are sung, “You are my hiding place.
I run to you. I need your mercy and grace, to see me through. So I’ll run to
you.”*
I certainly can relate. And I know King David could
too. He had the “hounds of earth” on his heels, tracking him down like a dog,
even when he had done no wrong. He sought the Lord and he was heard. He just
wanted to be hid in the shadow of His wings, from the wicked who surrounded
him. The Lord did protect him, and he became the king of all Israel.
Jesus Himself had times when He just needed to get
away from the pressing crowds and the masses who followed Him for a miracle.
There are several passages we read in the Gospels where He went “to be by Himself
in the wilderness”, or when He would get up early in the morning, when all
others were still asleep, just to be in the Father’s presence.
Having examples like these, for us to pattern our
life after, helps make it a bit easier to cope with, and yes, overcome, the
daily grind and onslaught that comes our way. We need to get our own batteries “recharged”
as is commonly shared from some pulpits.
Our spirits were created to have that void filled
only by His ability to fill it, and thus we need the quiet times alone with
Him. My personal morning prayer time with the Lord, which includes reading a chapter
of His word on a daily basis, replenishes that which had gone out the day or
night before.
Playing praise and worship music in our home, car,
or on a walk fills the atmosphere around us with His glory. The powerful sound waves
of good, wholesome music vibrating in our ears and hearts can replace the
energy lost due to the pressures on us each and every day.
To be honest, I don’t know how people live without
the Lord. I guess we know the answer by seeing that which is used instead, in
place of the Lord, to fill that emptiness and stress they experience. Lord
help them.
Give the Lord time today to refill your spiritual being
with refreshing water and nourishment. Have some daily manna from Him. First
take time to hide away in Him, and know that He will build you up and send you out.
It can be a mad house out there, but we have One Whom
we can run to. His love is what He has for you as you do..
Ahava (love in
Hebrew) to my family of friends,
Steve Martin
Founder/President
*(Don Moen, The
Hiding Place, Integrity Media 2006)
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Ahava Love Letter #74
“The Hiding Place” ©2013 Steve Martin
Date: In the year of our Lord
2013 (09/05/13 Thursday at 8:35 pm in Charlotte, NC)
All previous editions of Ahava
Love Letter can be found on this Blog:
Here are the last few:
Why Is A Gentile Like You Celebrating
the Feasts of the Jews? (#73)
They Are Loved Too (#72)
Oskars Needed Again? (#71)
Little Orphan Chuckie (#70)
Demons & Fire Trucks (#69)
I Like Mike (#68)
Disappointed with Small
Beginnings? (#67)
Rise Again (#66)
The Cities (#65)
How Can You Mend A Broken Heart
(#64)
