“The Secret Place”

Tom Barnard

 

“Oh, how great is your goodness…which you have prepared for those

who trust in you…You shall hide them in the secret place of your presence….”

(Psalm 31:19-21)

 

“Are you facing any threat or hardship this time that makes you anxious

or fearful? In the secret place you can recover the same fresh awareness

of God and the same ability to cast off fear that David sings about in this psalm….”

(J. Otis Ledbetter, in The Greatest Gift—Multnomah Publishers, Inc., 2006)

 

Most of us are not strangers to “threat or hardship” that causes anxiety or fear. As Gloria Gaither wrote,

 

“Someone said that in each life some rain is bound to fall

And each one sheds his share of tears and trouble troubles us all…”

 

Dad used to say, “My mother told me there would be days like this, but not three in a row.” David had many days like this, and he learned that in such times, God provides a “secret place” of his presence. If it worked for David, perhaps it will work for you and me. The Gaither song concludes with these words:

 

“And it won’t rain always

God’s promises are true

The sun’s gonna shine in His own good time

And He will see you through.”

 

Heavenly Father, thank you for your goodness and for that “secret place” where my concerns are joined by your grace. I need to be reminded of how accessible that place really is. Calm my fears and surround me with your love, I pray. May my heart always be in tune with yours. It is then that peace will reign in my life. I ask this in the strong Name of Jesus. Amen.