A Place of Refuge

       May 27, 1939, 937 Jews from Germany headed for Cuba with valid visas.  They were hoping to be saved from Hitler and his policies.  The Cuban government voided their visas and turned them away, so the ship set sail for the closest shores of the U.S.  There, they were not allowed to disembark, but were escorted out of U.S. shores into Halifax Harbour in Canada.  Upon request for refuge, Frederick Blair, director of the immigration not only refused the refugees entry, but later bragged about keeping Jews out of Canada.  Though the Jews returned to Europe, most of them were killed in Germany’s war.

       These people were looking for refuge from the coming storm and found none.  Expectations were cut down, hopes were dashed, and dreams were shattered.  I can’t imagine how hard that would be- knowing people had not responded for my and my family’s safety needs, so the disillusionment would have been strong.  The Lord God is not the same as flawed mankind, and He does seek to help the people of this earth… if we open our hearts to Him.

My soul, wait silently for God alone, for my expectation is from Him.  He only is my rock and my salvation; He is my defense; I shall not be moved.  In God is my salvation and my glory; the rock of my strength, and my refuge, is in God.  Trust in Him at all times, you people; pour out your heart before Him; God is a refuge for us. Selah  Ps. 62:5-8 NKJV

       We wait for God alone, because only He is worthy of our complete trust, and that is why we have hope in Him and His good intentions towards us (Jm. 1:17).  We wait silently since trying to help God’s will along usually gets ourselves into trouble that we would have avoided if we just waited quietly.  Only He is our strong place to stand, and our deliverer; His walls, they keep us safe, and we are not moved.  We can trust, rely on, have confidence in Him at all times because of how He looks out for our good.  This is why we can ‘pour out’ our hearts, our feelings, worries, concerns, and thoughts before Him, because in Him we will find refuge, protection, and a safe haven from the storms of life.

Wait on the LORD:

be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart:

wait, I say, on the LORD.

Ps. 27:14