Talk about your superhero!!

Wednesday
Psalm 46:1  God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.

I got the verse for this week from a cross necklace that my son, Jeron, was given several years ago. The necklace broke, but the cross remains, with this verse attached. This is symbolic: even though there was trouble (the necklace broke), the cross (God's power) remains.

I like the way this verse says "OUR." God intends for us to be in corporate bodies, to worship him and to need him together. While He is MY refuge, he is also OUR refuge. I remember when I was a young boy going to the storm shelter during a tornado. I never went alone--there were always others there, which made the experience seem almost fun. It would have been less fun alone. Now that I'm older, I realize God is there during any storm, real or figurative.

My college grammar teacher would say that saying "very" present is redundant and unnecessary--one can't be more present than present. In this case, however, saying God is VERY present intensifies the meaning of the word "present," indicative of the way God is present--not just a little present, but VERY present. I find a great deal of comfort in that.

Trouble--the very essence of our sinful natures always leads to trouble. Whether we find trouble or it finds us, trouble happens. When we are in trouble, we don't need a caped crusader or some other type of super hero. We need God.