“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.
Therefore we will not fear, though the earth should change,
though the mountains shake in the heart of the sea,
though its waters roar and foam,
though the mountains tremble with its tumult.”
(Psalm 46:1-3)

This week I scanned some of the headlines in various newspapers:
“Thousands remain without running water after Helene. Here’s how they’re coping.”
“Israel strikes southern Beirut; U.S. demands restraint in Lebanon, aid for Gaza”
“China launches large military drills as ‘stern warning’ to Taiwan”
“Trump Escalates Threats to Political Opponents He Deems the ‘Enemy'”
“A Crowd of Republicans Will Join Harris at a Pennsylvania Stop” 

It was the great Protestant Theologian Karl Barth who famously advised pastors to preach with the Bible in one hand and the newspaper in the other. Given all that’s swirling in the world around us, that’s not exactly easy to do.  Sometimes it’s downright depressing. 

So much violence and war and turmoil. 
People coping with natural disasters as the climate continues to change.
The present state of our country’s politics, a tense upcoming election, and fear for what the future may hold.

The Psalmist reminds us that God is our refuge and our strength. 
God is a very present help in trouble. 
Perhaps it helps to know that the Psalmist goes on from there to declare, “The nations are in an uproar; the kingdoms totter; he utters his voice; the earth melts.  The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge.” (Psalm 46:6-7)   

Sometimes the nations are in an uproar. 
Sometimes kingdoms totter and fall.
God is God and we are not.  
Then comes the famous verse, “Be still, and know that I am God!” (Psalm 46:10)
God is God and we are not.
And in God, we can always find rest for our weary hearts.

Photo by Rev. Lauren Ostrout.

Thursday Thoughts 10/17/24