Verse of the Day 10/6

Nahum 1:7 English Standard Version (ESV) ⁷ The LORD is good,
    a stronghold in the day of trouble;
he knows those who take refuge in him.

 

We've been considering what it means and how important it is to have hope.  Today's verse starts out with the foundation for our hope, it is that the Lord is good.  If He wasn't, you wouldn't go to Him, since He is why do we avoid coming to Him until he's the last resort?

 

Think about the next two statements, he is a stronghold, a place of retreat from an advancing enemy.  I couldn't help but think of "Helm's Deep" from the Lord of the Rings by Tolkien.  The second important part is that He knows those who take refuge in Him.  He knows this while we're on the way and He will let us, bring us in to the stronghold to find shelter and relief.

 

Pastor David Jeremiah went through a battle with cancer and writes about it in his book "A Bend in the Road".  He writes that it was the Lord "who knew the needs of my body and soul most deeply.  It was He who walked with me through the valley of the shadow, He who lavished upon me a deeper, more personal experience of His presence than I'd ever known before.  As I sought refuge in His Word, I found consolation beyond description for my troubled spirit."

 

As  I mentioned the other day, hope is a choice.  David Jeremiah made the choice to hope in the Lord and found consolation for his troubled spirit in His Word.

 

Looking back in my dark night of the soul, I can say the same thing.  Despair can drive us to or away from God, but if we are His, if we realize that He is good, at some point we will turn or return and seek refuge in Him  and His Word.

 

I have a couple extra copies of David Jeremiah's book, "A Bend in the Road".  If someone would like a copy,  I'll give or send one to you, first come first served. 

 

In Christ,
Mike

 

Follow the Verse of the Day blog at http://mikesvotd.blogspot.com
Eph 1:7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace  NIV

Nahum 1:3-7

Amplified Bible (AMP)

³The Lord is slow to anger and great in power and will by no means clear the guilty. The Lord has His way in the whirlwind and in the storm, and the clouds are the dust of His feet.

    ⁴He rebukes and threatens the sea and makes it dry, and dries up all the rivers. Bashan [on the east] and Mount Carmel [on the west] wither, and [in the north] the blossom of Lebanon fades.

    ⁵The mountains tremble and quake before Him and the hills melt away, and the earth is upheaved at His presence--yes, the world and all that dwell in it.

    ⁶Who can stand before His indignation? And who can stand up and endure the fierceness of His anger? His wrath is poured out like fire, and the rocks are broken asunder by Him.

    ⁷The Lord is good, a Strength and Stronghold in the day of trouble; He knows (recognizes, has knowledge of, and understands) those who take refuge and trust in Him.