July 13, 2025 • 32 mins
Jason Sterling July 13, 2025 Faith Presbyterian Church Birmingham, AL Bulletin
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
If you have a copy of God's Word, turn with me this
morning to Psalm 46.
So go to the center of yourBible.
You'll find the book of Psalms.
We are continuing this morningour study through the book of
Psalms.
We've been looking at variousPsalms this summer and, as
(00:20):
you're turning there, I want toopen with a question.
As you're turning there, I wantto open with a question when do
you turn?
What do you hold on to whenyour news feed is too much to
bear?
What do you hold on to or reachout for when your world falls
(00:44):
apart?
When the phone call comes thatchanges everything, or when you
get the diagnosis thatcompletely rewrites your story,
when the earth around you feelslike it's giving way in your
life, what do you grab onto life?
(01:13):
What do you grab onto?
Well, in Psalm 46, the psalmistknows what that's like.
He faces an earth-shakingmoment, and in those moments he
finds something to grab ontothat is unshakable, when
everything else around him feltlike it was giving way.
You'll see what I mean as weread.
This is God's Word, this isPsalm 46, the Word of the Lord.
(01:35):
God is our refuge and strength,a very present help in trouble.
Therefore, we will not fear,though the earth gives way,
though the mountains be movedinto the heart of the sea.
Verse 2.
God is in the midst of her.
She shall not be moved.
God will help her when morningdawns, the nations rage, the
(02:17):
kingdoms totter.
He utters his voice.
The earth melts.
The Lord of hosts is with us.
The God of Jacob is ourfortress.
Come behold the works of theLord, how he has brought
desolations on the earth.
He makes wars cease to the endof the earth.
He breaks the bow and shattersthe spear.
(02:37):
He burns the chariots with fire.
Be still and know that I am God.
I will be exalted among thenations.
I will be exalted in the earth.
The Lord of hosts is with us.
The God of Jacob is ourfortress.
This is the word of God.
(02:58):
Let me pray.
Let's ask for the spirit tocome help us this morning.
Let's pray together.
Father, please help.
It's no accident that we'rehere this morning.
Let's pray together.
Father, please help.
It's no accident that we'rehere this morning.
You have brought each personhere and you have this word for
us.
And so speak to us through yourSpirit.
I say this often, but everyweek.
(03:19):
In a room this size, someonelistening.
They are in the middle of theworst week of their life and
they need you, and so would youshow up, would you come through
your word and give us allsomething that we can hang on to
, stability in the midst of aworld that is constantly shaking
(03:40):
.
Hear our prayers in Christ'sname, amen.
Last weekend, texas in Texas,families really from throughout
the southeast, woke up to everyparent's worst nightmare.
What began as a normal campsummer and experience suddenly
(04:07):
turned into an unthinkabletragedy when flash flooding
claimed the lives of 27 campersand counselors.
It destroyed a city, a town.
It claimed the lives of manymore, and often I mean there's a
tragedy every day in our worldand things like this.
(04:31):
Oftentimes there's so much ofthis around us that it hits me,
but I'm able to quickly move on.
Well, I haven't been able tomove on, and I've talked to many
of you and you haven't beenable to move on, and I've talked
to many of you and you haven'tbeen able to move on either.
Every conversation that I'vebeen in this week, this tragedy
(04:54):
that we've experienced in Texassomehow comes up and people are
struggling with it, unable tomove on.
It has impacted us locally, inour city.
It's impacted families in ourcity and maybe it stuck with me
because I have all girls, I'm afather of all girls, and they
(05:18):
love camp and they grew up goingto camp, but I have not been
able to shake it.
They grew up going to camp butI have not been able to shake it
.
And this isn't just this morningabout what happened in Texas.
It is about every moment inlife that reminds you, that hits
you, whatever that is for youthis morning, or has been for
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you or will be in the future.
Every moment that makes yourealize how fragile life really
is and how quickly everything inyour life can change in an
instant.
And when we bump up againstthose moments, when those
moments come and they will comewe face a choice and they will
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come.
We face a choice.
We can spiral into despair andquestion everything we ever knew
about God, or we can turn tothe one who remains steady, to
the one who remains true wheneverything else in the world is
shaking.
You see, the truth is, whentragedy comes into our lives, it
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often rocks our faith, doesn'tit?
It shatters our sense ofsecurity and we are tempted in
that moment I know I sure am.
I am tempted in that moment, tolose faith in God's goodness
and control.
Faith in God's goodness andcontrol and friends.
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That's exactly why we need thispsalm this morning.
That's why we need Psalm 46,because this psalm offers no
quick fixes, no easy answers.
It offers us something way morevaluable.
It offers us an unshakable Godin a world that never stops
shaking.
Here's the question thismorning when do you find hope?
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How do you find hope whentragedy and crisis hit you?
Well, this psalm gives us a mapand helps us answer that
question.
Three things we need torecognize the world's harsh
reality.
Number one Secondly rest inGod's presence.
Lastly receive God's invitation.
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Recognize the world's harshreality.
Rest in God's presence, receiveGod's invitation.
That's where we're headed.
Let's take each of those inturn.
Our first heading recognize theworld's harsh reality.
These first three verses aresome of the most quoted verses
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in the Bible, and I want you tolook at your Bible and look at
the imagery in these first threeverses Earthquakes, mountains
collapsing into the sea, roaringwaters, and all of these
combined together, and what theauthor is trying to communicate
to us and we don't know what itis here, but he's trying to
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communicate to us the ultimatetragedy.
And so think about this.
Here's the picture.
What, in your mind's eye, isthe worst possible thing that
you can imagine happening,whatever that is for you.
That's what this is talkingabout, and notice that the
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psalmist doesn't rush to.
It's going to be okay.
The psalmist doesn't rush to.
Don't worry, be happy, put on asmile.
The author doesn't begin withchristian platitudes or trite
statements.
No, he enters into exactlywhere the people are in this
(09:10):
moment, where the ground ismoving underneath, underneath
your feet.
In those moments, we needsomething to hold on to that
will not give way, and thepsalmist here uses two powerful
words.
You can see them there in yourtext refuge and strength.
A refuge is a place to run whenyou're in trouble.
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It is a shelter Think about astorm shelter, strength.
It is the power that you needto face whatever it is that
you're going through that youcannot run from.
And so here you get in.
Those two words covers everycrisis.
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Sometimes, when you're incrisis or tragedy hits, you need
a place to hide, a place to run, and sometimes you need the
power to endure and to put onefoot in front of the other, and
most of the time you need both.
You need a refuge and you needstrength.
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Here's a picture.
It's summer, lots of people goto amusement parks.
Maybe you've been to Six Flags,maybe.
Whatever your amusement park ofchoice is, this always happens
to me.
I feel like I'm in my teenageyears again.
I ride all this stuff.
I get off of a roller coasteror one of these 3D rides or
whatever, and my equilibrium isoff and I don't feel well and I
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start walking in the oppositedirection that I'm supposed to.
I can't get my bearings,everything feels unsteady and
maybe you've had that experience.
And in that moment, what do youneed?
You need something solid.
You reach for the railing, youfind a bench to hold on to.
You're looking for somethingthat does not move and will not
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move.
That solid thing, whatever thatis, is your refuge and your
strength.
And it's exactly what thepsalmist is describing the
moment where life knocks thebreath out of you, where your
world and your life seems likeit's spinning out of control and
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you are unsteady and you needsomething that will not move,
something that you can hold onto.
The psalmist is writing topeople whose worlds have been
shattered.
And notice he validates theirexperience first.
Then I think that's importantNotice he validates their
experience first I think that'simportant.
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Then he points them to thestable thing, the stable one
that they can hold on to, and itis God.
When everything else in theworld breaks, god remains
unbroken.
When the earth is giving way,god is still our refuge.
When the mountains shake, godis still our refuge.
When the mountains shake, godis still our strength.
But let's be honest, let's speakfor a second.
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The way we all feel in themiddle of tragic moments, in
those moments, in the middle ofthe shaking, in the
ground-giving way, I don't knowabout you, but God doesn't feel
like a very present help introuble at all.
And I can assure you that theparents of these girls who
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didn't come home from summercamp do not feel like God is a
help in their trouble.
When you're sitting in ahospital room with your child
who is sick and you don't knowif they're going to go home,
where you're at a graveside andyou're bearing someone you love,
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maybe even a child, or you'rewatching a son or daughter go
through and suffer from anaddiction, in those moments,
honestly, god feels a millionmiles away, doesn't he?
He doesn't feel like he'shelping at all.
And we say again at least I do.
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God, if you were watching overme, why is everything I've
worked for gone?
Why is the person that I lovethe most in this world?
Why are they no longer here?
God, here it is.
Why didn't you stop this?
And under this first point,here's what I want you to walk
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away with.
That is not a lack of faith.
That's not a failure of faith.
That's not a failure of faith.
That is faith.
That, friends, is the tensionof living in a broken, fallen
world.
That is the normal Christianexperience.
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It's not a sign of a weak faith.
It is reality in a broken,fallen world.
Notice, the psalmist doesn't saypretend that the earth isn't
shaking.
No, he says the earth isshaking and God is your refuge
and your strength.
Notice, he doesn't say pretendyou feel God's help.
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He says no, god is your help.
You see, what he's doing ishe's calling you to trust a
reality and something that istrue, even when you don't feel
it and even when we don't senseit.
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And so, when your earth andyour world starts to shake and
you watch your marriage fallapart right before your eyes, or
when you bury your spouse andsomeone you love after 50 years
of marriage, or when theaccident comes out of nowhere
and when the floodwaters rise.
You don't have to pretend thatyou're not afraid.
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You don't have to pretend thatyou feel God's help.
You can be honest about yourfear and at the same time,
declare God is my refuge.
You can feel abandoned andalone and still trust that
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you're not alone.
You can be fearful and trustingat the same time.
That is the thing that hasstuck out to me more than
anything.
With the Psalms and you see iteverywhere we normally make it
an either-or.
No, it's a both, and you cansay Lord, I'm scared to death.
I don't understand this.
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And they're both true and youare with me and you will not
leave me nor forsake me.
The promise isn't that theearth won't give way.
The promise is that when theearth gives way, god is our
refuge, god is our strength,even when we don't feel it.
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And that leads to our secondpoint.
The psalm teaches us that wemust rest in God's presence.
Look at verses four throughseven.
So he's described thisearth-shaking chaos in verses 1
through 3, and then he shiftsthe focus to a river.
And the river's not a roaringriver, like we just saw, that
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threatened to destroy, but thisis a gentle river representing
the life-giving presence.
It's a metaphor.
There were no rivers inJerusalem, major rivers in
Jerusalem, and so this was apicture that pointed to the
life-giving presence that flowsinto God's people and flows into
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God's city, the point being,when everything else around you
is shaking and moving, there isa place in God's presence that
remains stable.
Look at verse 7.
In God's presence that remainsstable.
Look at verse 7.
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Notice, the Lord of hosts iswith us.
Not the Lord of hosts explainseverything.
Not the Lord of hosts answersall of our questions.
Not, the Lord of hosts is withus only when we feel it.
No, very simply, the Lord ofhosts is with us.
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In other words, the promise isGod's presence, not explanation.
His presence isn't diminishedby our inability to sense or
feel it in the moment.
Verse 5, god is in the midst ofher.
He's not describing anemotional experience.
He is describing and declaringa theological reality, present,
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tense, current reality andunchanging truth.
Think about a cloudy day.
On a cloudy day, you can't seethe sun.
But is the sun still there?
Yes, the sun is still there.
The clouds don't make the sundisappear.
They block our view.
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God's presence is like the sun.
It's always there.
Our view, god's presence islike the sun it's always there,
but sometimes the clouds in ourlives and the things that we
struggle and suffer with keep usfrom seeing and feeling the
presence of God.
But it is still there, andJesus is the ultimate
fulfillment of this promise.
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Remember Jesus on the cross, myGod, my God, why have you
forsaken me Experiencingultimate abandonment so that you
and I, this morning, could haveultimate assurance that God
will never leave us nor forsakeus?
Jesus experienced the absenceof God so that you could be
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guaranteed this morning of God'spresence.
And so what does that mean?
As we like to say here for youon, let's make it Wednesday at 2
pm.
Well, it means when your worldis shaking and whatever it is,
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God seems like a million milesaway.
His presence, friends, is stillthe most real thing in your
situation, whatever it is, inthe middle of all your questions
, even the things that you don'tunderstand, and it could be the
worst possible thing thathappens, the reality is that the
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Lord of hosts is with you.
And this is not about pretending.
No, this is about learning todistinguish between what we feel
and what is true.
This isn't about escapingreality.
It is about finding a differentreality.
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You see, your feelings pleasehear this they're real and they
are valid.
They're just not the deepestreality.
The deepest reality is that Godis in the midst of her, and so
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you know what that means.
It means that when you can'tsense God's presence or feel it,
declare it anyway.
When you don't understand andyou can't feel his help, trust
it anyway.
When you don't understand andyou can't feel his help, trust
it anyway Again.
That's what faith looks like.
Faith is God's.
I don't get this, I don'tunderstand this, but I know that
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you are here, that you have notleft me, because your word
tells me I believe.
Help my unbelief.
Remember Jesus loves me.
This I know how, for the Bibletells me.
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So Go back to the word and tothe truth of who God is, in his
character.
And here's the grace, god'sgrace to us.
When you can't feel hispresence personally, you can
experience it through his people.
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When you can't feel hispresence, god gives us this.
He gives us the church.
When our faith is fragile, weak, we can barely stand.
He gives us the people of Godto come around us and to hold us
up and to carry us.
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Richard Pratt, one of myprofessors in seminary.
Maybe you've heard me say thisbefore.
I'll never forget the time hestood up.
I didn't understand it at thetime, but after I've lived more
life I completely understand it.
But he stood up in front ofseminary students and said I go
to church every week so that Ican believe for another week.
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That is why this is soimportant.
That's why the church is soimportant.
That is why community is soimportant.
That's why grace groups are soimportant.
That's why we don't just wantyou to sit on the sidelines.
We want you to be involved inthe life of our church Because,
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honestly, I'm not sure you makeit without the church, make it
in this life, with all of theheartache and all of the pain,
without the body of Christ.
We need people to come aroundus and declare God's presence.
When we can't sense it forourselves, when we can't sense
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it for ourselves, wheneverything around you is shaking
, there is one thing constantEmmanuel, god with us.
That's not just a nicestatement, that is a bedrock
truth that you've got to hold onto when everything else gives
way around you.
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Lastly, let's look at theinvitation.
Quickly Receive God'sinvitation.
Look at verses 8 through 10.
Be still here's the invitationand know that I am God.
This isn't about physicalstillness and doing nothing.
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No, this is about active trust.
What does this mean?
What does it actually look like?
Well, it means that we pray andwe stop the endless what-if
scenarios and instead we get onour knees and we pray.
God, help us, god, I need you.
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I don't feel like you're here,but you tell me you're here.
Give me eyes to see and tobelieve that.
It means that, instead ofspiraling into worry, we choose
to pray.
It means that we take ourquestions to God rather than
letting our questions drive usaway from God.
Being still often it's so hard,isn't it in the midst of
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tragedy, to be still and knowthat he is God, when
everything's falling apart?
Being still is an invitation togo to God and say God, I don't
have this, you've got this.
Please carry what I cannot.
Being still and knowing that heis God is an invitation for us
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to open up our hands and releaseour grip on the unanswerable
questions that we face in themiddle of tragedy Doesn't mean
we stop asking questions.
No, it just simply means wehold them with open hands
instead of clenched fists.
God can handle our questions.
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He's been handling ourquestions since the beginning of
time and handling them sincethe days of Job.
He can handle our questions.
The questions they arelegitimate.
Yes, they're not ultimate.
What is ultimate is not ourunderstanding everything and
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having all the answers to ourquestions.
What is ultimate is God'scharacter and who he is.
Remember the garden ofGethsemane.
Jesus is crying out.
He doesn't get it.
He's like I don't know aboutthis.
Take this cup from me.
And then he says not, not mywill, but yours be done.
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He didn't understand everythingahead of him.
He didn't like the path.
He trusted the Father's heartwhen he could not trace his
hands.
Think about the cross.
It looked like the ultimatevictory for darkness, but
instead God used it and in thedarkest moments of human history
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he worked to bring salvation tothe world.
Can we talk?
I know, as your pastor, youmight expect me to have all the
philosophical and theologicalanswers for human suffering.
(27:09):
I do not and I hope thatdoesn't disappoint you.
I have wrestled this week withthis thing that happened and the
flooding in Texas.
I have wrestled and I have saidGod, you say you're good, but I
don't get this at all.
This doesn't make sense to me.
(27:35):
And then I read verse 11.
The God of Jacob is my fortress.
Thank goodness for that littlephrase in this passage, because
you remember who Jacob is.
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I mean, think about this.
Of all the patriarchs Godidentifies with here, of all the
patriarchs God identifies withhere, he identifies with the
scoundrel and a wrestler and adeceiver and a schemer.
That's who God identifies with,and that is God's way of saying
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I am a God for people who arein the middle of the mess, who
have lots of questions and whoare wrestling.
And so when you struggle withhow a good God can allow this
tragedy, friends, you are notdisqualifying yourself from His
refuge.
You are exactly who the refugeis designed for, because you see
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the God who stayed with Jacobthrough his deception and
through his fear and through hissin and through his unbelief
and through his honest questions, the God that stayed with Jacob
and identified with Jacob, isthe same God who stays with you
and stays with me in the middleof my wrestling and doubts and
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fears, and whatever it is,that's the gospel.
That's why it's such good news.
Last weekend, 27 families inTexas woke up to their worst
nightmare.
The harsh realities of theworld, hit them square right
between the eyes and left thoseparents asking the same
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questions that we ask when ourworld falls apart.
Where are you, god and God?
How do we move forward?
How do we even go on wheneverything feels so broken?
And in those devastatingmoments when your world is
shaking, friends, you don't haveto feel unshakable, you don't
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have to feel strong.
The God of Jacob is yourfortress.
Rest in God's presence.
The Lord of hosts is with us,even when we don't feel it.
Receive the invitation, be stilland know that I am God.
And you might say that youcan't be still.
(30:16):
And when you can't be still,let us hold you, let the church
hold you.
Let us hold you, let the churchhold you up and help you.
When you find it hard to trust,remind yourself of the truth of
Scripture.
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When you find it hard to trust,let God's character be your
anchor.
The earth gives way, themountains are shaking and
quaking, the rivers are roaring.
God is your refuge, he is ourstrength, he is our very present
help in times of trouble.
Let's pray In times of trouble.
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Let's pray.
Father, this is hard, hardstuff.
Thank you that you are solidground for us in the middle of a
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very unstable, shaking worldaround us and even our own lives
.
Forgive us for running to somany things for shelter when our
world gives way.
And, holy Spirit, would yougive us faith to believe that
you are with us, that you are atwork, even when it doesn't seem
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like it.
Help us, and when the worldaround us and our lives give way
, help us to believe, to bestill, to open up our hands and
believe that you are God.
We ask these things in Christ'sname, amen.
If you have a copy of God's Word, turn with me this
morning to Psalm 46.
So go to the center of yourBible.
You'll find the book of Psalms.
We are continuing this morningour study through the book of
Psalms.
We've been looking at variousPsalms this summer and, as
(00:20):
you're turning there, I want toopen with a question.
As you're turning there, I wantto open with a question when do
you turn?
What do you hold on to whenyour news feed is too much to
bear?
What do you hold on to or reachout for when your world falls
(00:44):
apart?
When the phone call comes thatchanges everything, or when you
get the diagnosis thatcompletely rewrites your story,
when the earth around you feelslike it's giving way in your
life, what do you grab onto life?
(01:13):
What do you grab onto?
Well, in Psalm 46, the psalmistknows what that's like.
He faces an earth-shakingmoment, and in those moments he
finds something to grab ontothat is unshakable, when
everything else around him feltlike it was giving way.
You'll see what I mean as weread.
This is God's Word, this isPsalm 46, the Word of the Lord.
(01:35):
God is our refuge and strength,a very present help in trouble.
Therefore, we will not fear,though the earth gives way,
though the mountains be movedinto the heart of the sea.
Verse 2.
God is in the midst of her.
She shall not be moved.
God will help her when morningdawns, the nations rage, the
(02:17):
kingdoms totter.
He utters his voice.
The earth melts.
The Lord of hosts is with us.
The God of Jacob is ourfortress.
Come behold the works of theLord, how he has brought
desolations on the earth.
He makes wars cease to the endof the earth.
He breaks the bow and shattersthe spear.
(02:37):
He burns the chariots with fire.
Be still and know that I am God.
I will be exalted among thenations.
I will be exalted in the earth.
The Lord of hosts is with us.
The God of Jacob is ourfortress.
This is the word of God.
(02:58):
Let me pray.
Let's ask for the spirit tocome help us this morning.
Let's pray together.
Father, please help.
It's no accident that we'rehere this morning.
Let's pray together.
Father, please help.
It's no accident that we'rehere this morning.
You have brought each personhere and you have this word for
us.
And so speak to us through yourSpirit.
I say this often, but everyweek.
(03:19):
In a room this size, someonelistening.
They are in the middle of theworst week of their life and
they need you, and so would youshow up, would you come through
your word and give us allsomething that we can hang on to
, stability in the midst of aworld that is constantly shaking
(03:40):
.
Hear our prayers in Christ'sname, amen.
Last weekend, texas in Texas,families really from throughout
the southeast, woke up to everyparent's worst nightmare.
What began as a normal campsummer and experience suddenly
(04:07):
turned into an unthinkabletragedy when flash flooding
claimed the lives of 27 campersand counselors.
It destroyed a city, a town.
It claimed the lives of manymore, and often I mean there's a
tragedy every day in our worldand things like this.
(04:31):
Oftentimes there's so much ofthis around us that it hits me,
but I'm able to quickly move on.
Well, I haven't been able tomove on, and I've talked to many
of you and you haven't beenable to move on, and I've talked
to many of you and you haven'tbeen able to move on either.
Every conversation that I'vebeen in this week, this tragedy
(04:54):
that we've experienced in Texassomehow comes up and people are
struggling with it, unable tomove on.
It has impacted us locally, inour city.
It's impacted families in ourcity and maybe it stuck with me
because I have all girls, I'm afather of all girls, and they
(05:18):
love camp and they grew up goingto camp, but I have not been
able to shake it.
They grew up going to camp butI have not been able to shake it
.
And this isn't just this morningabout what happened in Texas.
It is about every moment inlife that reminds you, that hits
you, whatever that is for youthis morning, or has been for
(05:41):
you or will be in the future.
Every moment that makes yourealize how fragile life really
is and how quickly everything inyour life can change in an
instant.
And when we bump up againstthose moments, when those
moments come and they will comewe face a choice and they will
(06:03):
come.
We face a choice.
We can spiral into despair andquestion everything we ever knew
about God, or we can turn tothe one who remains steady, to
the one who remains true wheneverything else in the world is
shaking.
You see, the truth is, whentragedy comes into our lives, it
(06:27):
often rocks our faith, doesn'tit?
It shatters our sense ofsecurity and we are tempted in
that moment I know I sure am.
I am tempted in that moment, tolose faith in God's goodness
and control.
Faith in God's goodness andcontrol and friends.
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That's exactly why we need thispsalm this morning.
That's why we need Psalm 46,because this psalm offers no
quick fixes, no easy answers.
It offers us something way morevaluable.
It offers us an unshakable Godin a world that never stops
shaking.
Here's the question thismorning when do you find hope?
(07:15):
How do you find hope whentragedy and crisis hit you?
Well, this psalm gives us a mapand helps us answer that
question.
Three things we need torecognize the world's harsh
reality.
Number one Secondly rest inGod's presence.
Lastly receive God's invitation.
(07:36):
Recognize the world's harshreality.
Rest in God's presence, receiveGod's invitation.
That's where we're headed.
Let's take each of those inturn.
Our first heading recognize theworld's harsh reality.
These first three verses aresome of the most quoted verses
(08:00):
in the Bible, and I want you tolook at your Bible and look at
the imagery in these first threeverses Earthquakes, mountains
collapsing into the sea, roaringwaters, and all of these
combined together, and what theauthor is trying to communicate
to us and we don't know what itis here, but he's trying to
(08:25):
communicate to us the ultimatetragedy.
And so think about this.
Here's the picture.
What, in your mind's eye, isthe worst possible thing that
you can imagine happening,whatever that is for you.
That's what this is talkingabout, and notice that the
(08:48):
psalmist doesn't rush to.
It's going to be okay.
The psalmist doesn't rush to.
Don't worry, be happy, put on asmile.
The author doesn't begin withchristian platitudes or trite
statements.
No, he enters into exactlywhere the people are in this
(09:10):
moment, where the ground ismoving underneath, underneath
your feet.
In those moments, we needsomething to hold on to that
will not give way, and thepsalmist here uses two powerful
words.
You can see them there in yourtext refuge and strength.
A refuge is a place to run whenyou're in trouble.
(09:34):
It is a shelter Think about astorm shelter, strength.
It is the power that you needto face whatever it is that
you're going through that youcannot run from.
And so here you get in.
Those two words covers everycrisis.
(09:54):
Sometimes, when you're incrisis or tragedy hits, you need
a place to hide, a place to run, and sometimes you need the
power to endure and to put onefoot in front of the other, and
most of the time you need both.
You need a refuge and you needstrength.
(10:15):
Here's a picture.
It's summer, lots of people goto amusement parks.
Maybe you've been to Six Flags,maybe.
Whatever your amusement park ofchoice is, this always happens
to me.
I feel like I'm in my teenageyears again.
I ride all this stuff.
I get off of a roller coasteror one of these 3D rides or
whatever, and my equilibrium isoff and I don't feel well and I
(10:42):
start walking in the oppositedirection that I'm supposed to.
I can't get my bearings,everything feels unsteady and
maybe you've had that experience.
And in that moment, what do youneed?
You need something solid.
You reach for the railing, youfind a bench to hold on to.
You're looking for somethingthat does not move and will not
(11:05):
move.
That solid thing, whatever thatis, is your refuge and your
strength.
And it's exactly what thepsalmist is describing the
moment where life knocks thebreath out of you, where your
world and your life seems likeit's spinning out of control and
(11:27):
you are unsteady and you needsomething that will not move,
something that you can hold onto.
The psalmist is writing topeople whose worlds have been
shattered.
And notice he validates theirexperience first.
Then I think that's importantNotice he validates their
experience first I think that'simportant.
(11:50):
Then he points them to thestable thing, the stable one
that they can hold on to, and itis God.
When everything else in theworld breaks, god remains
unbroken.
When the earth is giving way,god is still our refuge.
When the mountains shake, godis still our refuge.
When the mountains shake, godis still our strength.
But let's be honest, let's speakfor a second.
(12:17):
The way we all feel in themiddle of tragic moments, in
those moments, in the middle ofthe shaking, in the
ground-giving way, I don't knowabout you, but God doesn't feel
like a very present help introuble at all.
And I can assure you that theparents of these girls who
(12:41):
didn't come home from summercamp do not feel like God is a
help in their trouble.
When you're sitting in ahospital room with your child
who is sick and you don't knowif they're going to go home,
where you're at a graveside andyou're bearing someone you love,
(13:03):
maybe even a child, or you'rewatching a son or daughter go
through and suffer from anaddiction, in those moments,
honestly, god feels a millionmiles away, doesn't he?
He doesn't feel like he'shelping at all.
And we say again at least I do.
(13:25):
God, if you were watching overme, why is everything I've
worked for gone?
Why is the person that I lovethe most in this world?
Why are they no longer here?
God, here it is.
Why didn't you stop this?
And under this first point,here's what I want you to walk
(13:51):
away with.
That is not a lack of faith.
That's not a failure of faith.
That's not a failure of faith.
That is faith.
That, friends, is the tensionof living in a broken, fallen
world.
That is the normal Christianexperience.
(14:14):
It's not a sign of a weak faith.
It is reality in a broken,fallen world.
Notice, the psalmist doesn't saypretend that the earth isn't
shaking.
No, he says the earth isshaking and God is your refuge
and your strength.
Notice, he doesn't say pretendyou feel God's help.
(14:37):
He says no, god is your help.
You see, what he's doing ishe's calling you to trust a
reality and something that istrue, even when you don't feel
it and even when we don't senseit.
(14:58):
And so, when your earth andyour world starts to shake and
you watch your marriage fallapart right before your eyes, or
when you bury your spouse andsomeone you love after 50 years
of marriage, or when theaccident comes out of nowhere
and when the floodwaters rise.
You don't have to pretend thatyou're not afraid.
(15:20):
You don't have to pretend thatyou feel God's help.
You can be honest about yourfear and at the same time,
declare God is my refuge.
You can feel abandoned andalone and still trust that
(15:42):
you're not alone.
You can be fearful and trustingat the same time.
That is the thing that hasstuck out to me more than
anything.
With the Psalms and you see iteverywhere we normally make it
an either-or.
No, it's a both, and you cansay Lord, I'm scared to death.
I don't understand this.
(16:03):
And they're both true and youare with me and you will not
leave me nor forsake me.
The promise isn't that theearth won't give way.
The promise is that when theearth gives way, god is our
refuge, god is our strength,even when we don't feel it.
(16:25):
And that leads to our secondpoint.
The psalm teaches us that wemust rest in God's presence.
Look at verses four throughseven.
So he's described thisearth-shaking chaos in verses 1
through 3, and then he shiftsthe focus to a river.
And the river's not a roaringriver, like we just saw, that
(16:47):
threatened to destroy, but thisis a gentle river representing
the life-giving presence.
It's a metaphor.
There were no rivers inJerusalem, major rivers in
Jerusalem, and so this was apicture that pointed to the
life-giving presence that flowsinto God's people and flows into
(17:07):
God's city, the point being,when everything else around you
is shaking and moving, there isa place in God's presence that
remains stable.
Look at verse 7.
In God's presence that remainsstable.
Look at verse 7.
(17:27):
Notice, the Lord of hosts iswith us.
Not the Lord of hosts explainseverything.
Not the Lord of hosts answersall of our questions.
Not, the Lord of hosts is withus only when we feel it.
No, very simply, the Lord ofhosts is with us.
(17:48):
In other words, the promise isGod's presence, not explanation.
His presence isn't diminishedby our inability to sense or
feel it in the moment.
Verse 5, god is in the midst ofher.
He's not describing anemotional experience.
He is describing and declaringa theological reality, present,
(18:13):
tense, current reality andunchanging truth.
Think about a cloudy day.
On a cloudy day, you can't seethe sun.
But is the sun still there?
Yes, the sun is still there.
The clouds don't make the sundisappear.
They block our view.
(18:34):
God's presence is like the sun.
It's always there.
Our view, god's presence islike the sun it's always there,
but sometimes the clouds in ourlives and the things that we
struggle and suffer with keep usfrom seeing and feeling the
presence of God.
But it is still there, andJesus is the ultimate
fulfillment of this promise.
(18:57):
Remember Jesus on the cross, myGod, my God, why have you
forsaken me Experiencingultimate abandonment so that you
and I, this morning, could haveultimate assurance that God
will never leave us nor forsakeus?
Jesus experienced the absenceof God so that you could be
(19:23):
guaranteed this morning of God'spresence.
And so what does that mean?
As we like to say here for youon, let's make it Wednesday at 2
pm.
Well, it means when your worldis shaking and whatever it is,
(19:43):
God seems like a million milesaway.
His presence, friends, is stillthe most real thing in your
situation, whatever it is, inthe middle of all your questions
, even the things that you don'tunderstand, and it could be the
worst possible thing thathappens, the reality is that the
(20:05):
Lord of hosts is with you.
And this is not about pretending.
No, this is about learning todistinguish between what we feel
and what is true.
This isn't about escapingreality.
It is about finding a differentreality.
(20:27):
You see, your feelings pleasehear this they're real and they
are valid.
They're just not the deepestreality.
The deepest reality is that Godis in the midst of her, and so
(20:47):
you know what that means.
It means that when you can'tsense God's presence or feel it,
declare it anyway.
When you don't understand andyou can't feel his help, trust
it anyway.
When you don't understand andyou can't feel his help, trust
it anyway Again.
That's what faith looks like.
Faith is God's.
I don't get this, I don'tunderstand this, but I know that
(21:15):
you are here, that you have notleft me, because your word
tells me I believe.
Help my unbelief.
Remember Jesus loves me.
This I know how, for the Bibletells me.
(21:35):
So Go back to the word and tothe truth of who God is, in his
character.
And here's the grace, god'sgrace to us.
When you can't feel hispresence personally, you can
experience it through his people.
(21:55):
When you can't feel hispresence, god gives us this.
He gives us the church.
When our faith is fragile, weak, we can barely stand.
He gives us the people of Godto come around us and to hold us
up and to carry us.
(22:17):
Richard Pratt, one of myprofessors in seminary.
Maybe you've heard me say thisbefore.
I'll never forget the time hestood up.
I didn't understand it at thetime, but after I've lived more
life I completely understand it.
But he stood up in front ofseminary students and said I go
to church every week so that Ican believe for another week.
(22:37):
That is why this is soimportant.
That's why the church is soimportant.
That is why community is soimportant.
That's why grace groups are soimportant.
That's why we don't just wantyou to sit on the sidelines.
We want you to be involved inthe life of our church Because,
(22:59):
honestly, I'm not sure you makeit without the church, make it
in this life, with all of theheartache and all of the pain,
without the body of Christ.
We need people to come aroundus and declare God's presence.
When we can't sense it forourselves, when we can't sense
(23:25):
it for ourselves, wheneverything around you is shaking
, there is one thing constantEmmanuel, god with us.
That's not just a nicestatement, that is a bedrock
truth that you've got to hold onto when everything else gives
way around you.
(23:46):
Lastly, let's look at theinvitation.
Quickly Receive God'sinvitation.
Look at verses 8 through 10.
Be still here's the invitationand know that I am God.
This isn't about physicalstillness and doing nothing.
(24:09):
No, this is about active trust.
What does this mean?
What does it actually look like?
Well, it means that we pray andwe stop the endless what-if
scenarios and instead we get onour knees and we pray.
God, help us, god, I need you.
(24:31):
I don't feel like you're here,but you tell me you're here.
Give me eyes to see and tobelieve that.
It means that, instead ofspiraling into worry, we choose
to pray.
It means that we take ourquestions to God rather than
letting our questions drive usaway from God.
Being still often it's so hard,isn't it in the midst of
(24:57):
tragedy, to be still and knowthat he is God, when
everything's falling apart?
Being still is an invitation togo to God and say God, I don't
have this, you've got this.
Please carry what I cannot.
Being still and knowing that heis God is an invitation for us
(25:22):
to open up our hands and releaseour grip on the unanswerable
questions that we face in themiddle of tragedy Doesn't mean
we stop asking questions.
No, it just simply means wehold them with open hands
instead of clenched fists.
God can handle our questions.
(25:42):
He's been handling ourquestions since the beginning of
time and handling them sincethe days of Job.
He can handle our questions.
The questions they arelegitimate.
Yes, they're not ultimate.
What is ultimate is not ourunderstanding everything and
(26:02):
having all the answers to ourquestions.
What is ultimate is God'scharacter and who he is.
Remember the garden ofGethsemane.
Jesus is crying out.
He doesn't get it.
He's like I don't know aboutthis.
Take this cup from me.
And then he says not, not mywill, but yours be done.
(26:25):
He didn't understand everythingahead of him.
He didn't like the path.
He trusted the Father's heartwhen he could not trace his
hands.
Think about the cross.
It looked like the ultimatevictory for darkness, but
instead God used it and in thedarkest moments of human history
(26:49):
he worked to bring salvation tothe world.
Can we talk?
I know, as your pastor, youmight expect me to have all the
philosophical and theologicalanswers for human suffering.
(27:09):
I do not and I hope thatdoesn't disappoint you.
I have wrestled this week withthis thing that happened and the
flooding in Texas.
I have wrestled and I have saidGod, you say you're good, but I
don't get this at all.
This doesn't make sense to me.
(27:35):
And then I read verse 11.
The God of Jacob is my fortress.
Thank goodness for that littlephrase in this passage, because
you remember who Jacob is.
(27:55):
I mean, think about this.
Of all the patriarchs Godidentifies with here, of all the
patriarchs God identifies withhere, he identifies with the
scoundrel and a wrestler and adeceiver and a schemer.
That's who God identifies with,and that is God's way of saying
(28:18):
I am a God for people who arein the middle of the mess, who
have lots of questions and whoare wrestling.
And so when you struggle withhow a good God can allow this
tragedy, friends, you are notdisqualifying yourself from His
refuge.
You are exactly who the refugeis designed for, because you see
(28:44):
the God who stayed with Jacobthrough his deception and
through his fear and through hissin and through his unbelief
and through his honest questions, the God that stayed with Jacob
and identified with Jacob, isthe same God who stays with you
and stays with me in the middleof my wrestling and doubts and
(29:06):
fears, and whatever it is,that's the gospel.
That's why it's such good news.
Last weekend, 27 families inTexas woke up to their worst
nightmare.
The harsh realities of theworld, hit them square right
between the eyes and left thoseparents asking the same
(29:28):
questions that we ask when ourworld falls apart.
Where are you, god and God?
How do we move forward?
How do we even go on wheneverything feels so broken?
And in those devastatingmoments when your world is
shaking, friends, you don't haveto feel unshakable, you don't
(29:53):
have to feel strong.
The God of Jacob is yourfortress.
Rest in God's presence.
The Lord of hosts is with us,even when we don't feel it.
Receive the invitation, be stilland know that I am God.
And you might say that youcan't be still.
(30:16):
And when you can't be still,let us hold you, let the church
hold you.
Let us hold you, let the churchhold you up and help you.
When you find it hard to trust,remind yourself of the truth of
Scripture.
(30:38):
When you find it hard to trust,let God's character be your
anchor.
The earth gives way, themountains are shaking and
quaking, the rivers are roaring.
God is your refuge, he is ourstrength, he is our very present
help in times of trouble.
Let's pray In times of trouble.
(31:01):
Let's pray.
Father, this is hard, hardstuff.
Thank you that you are solidground for us in the middle of a
(31:25):
very unstable, shaking worldaround us and even our own lives
.
Forgive us for running to somany things for shelter when our
world gives way.
And, holy Spirit, would yougive us faith to believe that
you are with us, that you are atwork, even when it doesn't seem
(31:48):
like it.
Help us, and when the worldaround us and our lives give way
, help us to believe, to bestill, to open up our hands and
believe that you are God.
We ask these things in Christ'sname, amen.
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