A Very Present Help in Trouble

A Very Present Help in Trouble.  The psalmist implies a question to his audience: where do you take refuge in times of trouble? He answers his own implied question in the opening verse of Psalm 46, “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.” Drawing upon the long history of Israel, the psalmist alludes to the earthquake at Sinai when Moses walked into the storm, at the edge of Egypt when the Hebrews walked into the Red Sea, and at the flood when Noah walked into the ark. “Therefore we will not fear though the earth gives way, though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble at its swelling” (Psa. 46:2-3). Fright cannot be controlled since it is a physiological reflex, but fear can be displaced as the primary motivator for action in time of trouble. Trembling knees do not prevent us from bowing our knees before God in the storm. In a sense, it is precisely when our knees are trembling that we can show the most faith.

Trust does not require that the storm breaks before our worship starts. Peace exists independently from the storm. “There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy habitation of the Most High. God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved; God will help her when morning dawns. The nations rage, the kingdoms totter; he utters his voice, the earth melts. The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress” (Psa. 46:4-7). The Lord is central, not the storm or even our relationship to the storm, but the Lord’s relationship with us. Because he has done everything necessary in the past, we can trust him to do everything that will become necessary in the future. “Come, behold the works of the Lord, how he has brought desolations on the earth. He makes wars cease to the end of the earth; he breaks the bow and shatters the spear; he burns the chariots with fire” (Psa. 46:8-9).

“Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth! The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress” (Psa. 46:10-11). Stillness is spoken, not to the storm but to the people in the storm. Cease from panic-fueled attempts to save self, like Moses spoke at the Red Sea: “Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will work for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall never see again. The Lord will fight for you, and you have only to be silent” (Exo. 14:13-14).