Faith in a Time of Pandemic – Taking Refuge in God

LXII
Refuge in God. (5/28)

Happy are those who take refuge in God. (Psalm 2:11. Read Psalm 2 in its entirety.)

The Psalms are about nations as well as persons. The Hebrews saw humans as embedded in community. No nation or person ever succeeded on their own but depended on the goodness and justice of the wider community.

According to the Psalmist, the nation is in trouble, partly due to its own misplaced priorities, injustice, and failure to follow God’s Way. Other nations are a threat. Yet, for all their strutting and fretting, they will not win the day. “The One who sits in the heavens laughs.” (Psalm 2:4) God laughs at the bloviating, bullying, self-importance of political leaders then and now. Leaders will come and go but God endures forever.

The Psalms are clear that we must not leave morality or spirituality to politicians, those we like and those we don’t like. We must be the change we want to see in the world, as Gandhi says. We need to take refuge in God, not human powers. Divine refuge is not just seeking protection. It is following God’s Way, trusting God, and living according to God’s values not our culture’s or society’s values. God has a higher path: it involves gratitude, love, compassion, hospitality, and justice. We can weather the storm if we put our lives in God’s care and follow God’s Way.

God is with us and will show us personally and as a nation the Way forward if we open to God’s Wisdom. A Way will be made.
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Holy One, show me your Way. Give me your Life. Guide my path so that I may live lovingly and justly. Amen.

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Bruce Epperly is a Cape Cod pastor, professor, and author of over 50 books including FAITH IN A TIME OF PANDEMIC and GOD ONLINE: A MYSTIC’S GUIDE TO THE INTERNET.