The umbrella and the cleft in the rock…

"From the ends of the earth I call to you, I call as my heart grows faint; lead me to the rock that is higher than I.  For you have been my refuge, a strong tower against the foe." (Psalm 61:2-3)

When I think about God as my refuge, I always think of hiding in Him.  Retreating from those things that make me tired and afraid and being alone with Him.  Like Elijah, after running in fear from Jezebel, slept under the tree while the angel of the Lord fed and protected him until he was strong enough to return to battle.  I picture a cleft in the rock where God nurses us back to full health and restores our souls.  This indeed is refuge. 

But God can also be a different kind of refuge.  In addition to being our cleft in the rock, He’s also our umbrella.

There are days when it’s storming in our lives, and we don’t want to go out.  But God provides an umbrella and tells us to step out anyway.  We might get wet, and we’re tired and somewhat fearful of the storm.  But we can’t hide out in these times, even when all we want to do is curl up with Him and stay dry.  He lovingly tells us, “baby, I know you’re afraid and tired, but I need you out there today; I can’t give you the day off; now, take this umbrella (my refuge) and go.”  In these times, we must accept that form of refuge and go out into the storm, knowing that His umbrella will cover us.

God knows exactly what we need when we need it.  There are times when we have nothing left, and God becomes our place to hide and rest.  A sweet refuge from the battle.  But there are also times when He calls us to stay on mission with Him, facing the storm head on.  He becomes our umbrella, our refuge during the battle.