Dear Saints of Valley Church,
For most of my life, I’ve lived in California. Our family has been evacuated due to quickly moving fires, I’ve felt my chair rocking back and forth during an earthquake, and we’ve all experienced years of droughts. However, it wasn’t until I was flying back and forth to my seminary classes in Kentucky that I realized the differences between the disasters we have in California versus those experienced by the rest of the country.
I remember getting off the plane in Louisville, Kentucky, and being surprised by a huge sign indicating that the airport bathroom also doubled as a tornado shelter. I probably told myself something like, “Well, I hope I don’t need a tornado shelter, but I’m glad they have them if one comes this way.” Most of the week went smoothly, until one afternoon when an alarm went off across the campus. I didn’t know what the alarm was for, and neither did our visiting professor, who had flown in from Minnesota, because he ignored the alarm and kept on lecturing. Thankfully, one of the school’s administrators realized our class had not responded to the tornado alarm and sent a runner to lead us to the designated shelter. I may have never given much thought about tornado alarms and shelters before that first trip to Kentucky, but when the storm came, I was sure thankful the school had them to keep us secure.
This Sunday, as we study Psalm 16, we see David using the image of God being his “refuge” in the midst of his present crisis. When the tornadoes of trouble caused destruction in his life, David knew the trustworthiness of God as his refuge and shelter. Only verse one of this Psalm represents his prayer; the rest of the Psalm is a reminder to himself and to us that our secure trust in a satisfying God will stand firm when trouble strikes.
I look forward to our Sunday gathering as we seek to glorify God by following Jesus together. Let us be like David and remind one another of the trustworthy God we have as we greet one another, rejoice with one another, weep with one another, bear with one another, and sing to one another (three of the songs we will be singing are Death Was Arrested, Christ Our Hope in Life and Death, and Tis So Sweet to Trust in Jesus), while we listen to God’s Word together.
By His strength and for His glory,
Craig Shigyo