Refuge – Where do I go when I am far away from home

So, thinking, praying, wondering...where do I go for safety, for comfort and assurance when I am so far from any place that feels like home? I don’t have a person or people who are necessarily home for me, and people come and go, I can’t count on that. There is no place that I can count on to feel like home for very long either. I don’t stay anywhere long enough to really call it home. So when the Lord requires me to give up the earthly concept of home, what do I do with home sickness, with the fear and insecurity of being adrift on the unstable sea of time and space? I asked myself, “What do I hold on to when all the constants in my life are washed out from under my feet? Where do I go for comfort and safety when I don’t have a home?” And so I went to the one place that I know I can find sure answers to those hard soul questions:

“Lord, you have been our dwelling place throughout all generations.” Ps 90:1
“I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.” Ps 23:6
“The eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms” Deut 33:27

God is my home, my safe place, my never-changing constant. Those are more than just words on a page, they are the living words of God, His promises written down for the generations of believers who have asked the question, “Where do I go for comfort and safety when I don’t have anything else?” Isn’t that exactly what Jesus did? Wasn’t Jesus a homeless wanderer, a vagabond, dependant on the generosity of his followers and his disciples and their families for his daily bread? Yet, because he knew where his home really was, he was able to live his life sold out to the work of the Father. The Bible is full of assurances that God is, in fact, the only home that is not subject to the ravages of time and circumstance.

2 Samuel 22: 1-3
David sang to the LORD the words of this song when the LORD delivered him from the hand of all his enemies and from the hand of Saul. 2 He said:
"The LORD is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer;
3 my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge,
my shield and the horn of my salvation.
He is my stronghold, my refuge and my savior—
from violent men you save me.

Psalm 5:11-12
11 But let all who take refuge in you be glad;
let them ever sing for joy.
Spread your protection over them,
that those who love your name may rejoice in you.
12 For surely, O LORD, you bless the righteous;
you surround them with your favor as with a shield.

Psalm 9:9-10
9 The LORD is a refuge for the oppressed,
a stronghold in times of trouble.
10 Those who know your name will trust in you,
for you, LORD, have never forsaken those who seek you.

Psalm 46:1-3
1 God is our refuge and strength,
an ever-present help in trouble.
2 Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way
and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea,
3 though its waters roar and foam
and the mountains quake with their surging.
Selah

Psalm 59:16-17
16 But I will sing of your strength,
in the morning I will sing of your love;
for you are my fortress,
my refuge in times of trouble.
17 O my Strength, I sing praise to you;
you, O God, are my fortress, my loving God.

Psalm 4:7-8
7 You have filled my heart with greater joy
than when their grain and new wine abound.
8 I will lie down and sleep in peace,
for you alone, O LORD,
make me dwell in safety.

Psalm 32:6-8
6 Therefore let everyone who is godly pray to you
while you may be found;
surely when the mighty waters rise,
they will not reach him.
7 You are my hiding place;
you will protect me from trouble
and surround me with songs of deliverance.
Selah
8 I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go;
I will counsel you and watch over you.

Psalm 27:4-5
4 One thing I ask of the LORD,
this is what I seek:
that I may dwell in the house of the LORD
all the days of my life,
to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD
and to seek him in his temple.
5 For in the day of trouble
he will keep me safe in his dwelling;
he will hide me in the shelter of his tabernacle
and set me high upon a rock.