We are currently experiencing a global day of trouble. To quote something I have heard almost everyone say “We have never seen anything like this”. That is a bit of an understatement. To be honest, 2 months ago it would have been hard to fathom the world having any sort of universally shared experience. Yet here we are. Unfortunately, the shared experience is one of grief and fear. The constant presence of grief and fear tells you that that the day of trouble has found you and in this case, it has found us.
Where do you run on the day of trouble? Where you run in the day of trouble tells me a lot about you. In this moment, you don’t have to imagine where you would run, instead you can think ‘where have I run?’ or ‘what am I running to?’. As the day of trouble has collectively descended upon us, I have watched people running in all sorts of directions. But where did you run to? Your 401k to see how much your retirement has fallen? To the news to try and get more and more information? To the store so that you could stockpile paper goods and canned food?
Where you run to on the day of trouble will reveal where your hope is and ultimately what you believe will save you. The same way a scared child will run to their parent. They believe in their parents’ arms they will find both safety and saving. Where do you run in the day of trouble? Your 401k? You may believe that your money will save you. The news? You may believe that information will save you. The store? You may believe that a stockpile will save you. The good news is (kind of good news I guess), is that the day of trouble is nothing new. The great King David experienced many days of trouble, listen to what he says:
The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?
Psalm 27:1
The Bible refers to David as “a man after God’s own heart” and on the day of trouble, David runs to God. He runs to God because he believes that God will save him and guide him. Stronghold, literally translated as a refuge, the place where we find both safety and protection. David finds both a refuge and salvation in God, then draws the concluding question “Whom shall I fear?” It should not surprise you that Jesus is constantly inviting people to run to him, find salvation, and relinquish fear.
As the day of trouble descends upon us both individually and collectively, where and what you run to will tell the story to those who come after you. May our story, may your story, be one that results in a running to God as your refuge. In Him may you find both the salvation and hope that you need.
Chasing Eden 
Great reminder of What / Who is most important to you. Who is your God or god. What am I going to invest in? Something in this world?
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Very good Josh. It is my personal belief that Jesus new from before the moment of creation that this time in 2020 – the COVID 19 – would plaque His earth. He told us in the Olivet Discourse – specifically in Luke 21 – that plaques would happen repeatedly over the earth and they have for the last 2000 years. We don’t know what the end result of this plaque will be but you are right that this is a test of our heart in that what or better yet “WHO” do we depend on when we walk through a deep dark valley that is surrounded by stress, anxiety and fear. Where we have yet to see a human solution to it. I hope that all of us at Northside have run to the Fortress and Refuge that King David did. I think the Apostle Paul said it all – “FOR ME TO LIVE IS CHRIST. FOR ME TO DIE IS GAIN.”
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