Janet Fithian broke the lawn mower blade on it when she was a newlywed.  An ugly orange rock about a foot in diameter.  “Can’t we dig it up?” she asked her husband.  Both he and his father agreed; it had been there since the Civil War when their family moved onto the property.  No one had ever been able to remove it.
So it stayed.  Her children were born, grew up, and moved away.  Her father-in-law died.  Then her husband.  Janet writes, “After the mourning, there was the coping—and with it a sharpened awareness of my surroundings, because I could change them more easily than my life’s situation.  Now I began to see the yard around me the way a woman sees her house when company comes unexpectedly.  I saw a hundred little sore spots.  I began to heal them, one at a time.”
She left the rock alone, however.  Nothing could be done about it.  It stood sentinel over its patch of weeds and crabgrass, a distasteful scab on the lawn.
Finally, Janet went to the shed and got her shovel.  She would dig it out.  She braced herself for what would be a difficult experience, one in which others in previous generations must have failed.  She put on heavy shoes and rolled out the wheelbarrow.
Five minutes later the rock was out.  It had been about a foot deep, and maybe six inches wider than it looked from the top.  She pried it loose with a crowbar and  hoisted it into the wheelbarrow.
She was stunned.  “That rock had persisted there beyond living memory.  Each family had taken it on faith that the previous generation had tried and failed to remove it. Because the rock had appeared to be large and deep, it was treated as immovable and strong.”
What large, ugly orange thing are you facing?  Others may tell you that it can’t be moved.  Nothing can be done.
Don’t be so sure.
The ugliest, most immovable object ever is man’s sin.  But one day Jesus rolled out the wheelbarrow of grace, and hoisting on a cross-shaped crowbar, He moved the immovable.  In love He took our place, “so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Corinthians 5:21).
         — Bulletin Digest

The writer of this psalm needed refuge.  He was in need of a place of safety, shelter, and protection.  That place is described as “in the shadow of thy wings.”  God knew when He created this world that there would be dangers of all kinds in it for us.  So, He also invites us to the place of refuge.  Sometimes, people actually go to Him for refuge—but not too often.  Jesus commented on this in Luke 13:34:

There are two sections in this poem. In verses 1-5, David wrote about the need for refuge.  In verses 6-11, David wrote about the reception of refuge.

In the first five verses, five things are noted regarding the need for refuge. In verse 1, David speaks of the need for mercy in light of his “calamities”.  This word means “any troublesome evil, event or accident; a ruinous downfall; a very great misfortune” (Wilson’s O.T. Word Studies, p. 62). It covers any number of difficulties that we face in life, and is a reminder that we can come for mercy in any of these times—trusting God enough to come to Him in any trouble is the lesson of verse 1. In verse 2, David speaks of the fact that God will “perform” when we come to Him.  This word means, “to finish, accomplish, execute” (Wilson, p. 307).  In verse 3, David shows how God is able to provide. He uses the simple word “send” in this verse two times.  When we are “in the shadow of his wings”, He sends out salvation, mercy, and truth; and these things take care of our “calamity.” In verse 4, the specific “calamity” is described—David’s enemies, who are as ferocious as lions, and are ready to destroy him.  David was fully aware of the danger, but he was just as aware of the fact that his place of refuge was able to protect him.  In verse 5, David speaks of God’s real position in this universe and gives Him the praise that He deserves (see also Ephesians 3:20,21).

In the last six verses, five things are presented in connection with the reception of refuge. In verse 6, David speaks of the retribution that God brought on those who had set themselves against David. One of the common methods of the Lord is to cause the enemies of His people to be brought low by the very thing that they meant to use against the faithful!  In verses 7 and 8, David reminds his readers of some of the results of refuge.  The first result is that he was steadfast (The King James Version says "fixed.”).  This word means, “to set right” (Wilson, p.167).  The second result is that he would sing praises.  The third result is that he would “awake early”, no doubt referring to his desire to be in constant and alert praise to God.  In verse 9, he makes a commitment to tell these things to as many people as he possibly could. In verse 10, he writes that the message the people needed to hear was—and is—the message of God’s mercy and truth. And in verse 11 (which is the same as verse 5), he repeats the chorus of God’s real position of deserving honor and praise over the entire universe.

Let us learn the simple lesson of our need to seek out the refuge that God offers in all of life’s hard times.  Let us trust Him enough to find that refuge “in the shadow of his wings” every time.
    — Skip Andrews
 

Next week: 
 

SICK LIST: Electa Wilson, Steve Fishel, and Donna Fields remain on our prayer list.
SYMPATHY:  We offer our sympathy to Jewell Grave’s family.  Her granddaughter’s husband’s twin brother was killed in an automobile accident.  
GROUP 4:  Group 4 is in charge of the services at Plantation South at 1:30.  Also, please meet up front following evening services for visitation assignments.
SEEKING THE LOST:  Class will meet Sunday evening, June 25, at 5:00.
CHILDREN’S CLASS:  5:30 today.
TFTW GROUND BREAKING:  Everyone is invited to stay Sunday evening, June 25, for the ground breaking for the addition to the Truth for the World building.  Please bring finger foods and drinks for our fellowship meal following.     
FOR THE RECORD: 6/11  6/18
AM Class   114  106
AM Worship   132  119
PM Worship   91  94
Wednesday   113  122
Contribution   $5816  $8599
Budget   $6500  $6500
 AWAY:  Ernest Burnette is in Nepal and will be returning June 30.  The Northrops are in Ukraine.  Ed Crookshank and Rod Rutherford will be in Zambia June 29-July 19.  
RADIO WORK:  TFTW needs funds for the radio program in Zambia for one                                        year.  They have seven months funded so far, but the whole year must be paid while they are there or the program will not be broadcast at all.  If you would like to help or know more about this work, please call Rod or Ed at 770 622-1525.