God the Refuge of His People

"God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore, we will not fear, even though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea; Though its waters roar and be troubled, though the mountains shake with its swelling." - Psalm 46:1-3

I had no idea this morning when I first read this Scripture, that my day was going to be as bad as it was. Ok, so maybe it wasn't really horrible, it just felt that way. Let me tell you how it started. In our school, each person is assigned to provide a treat to share for someone else's birthday. I was assigned to bring something for my fellow missionary teacher, Jason. Today was Jason's birthday, and I made sure to bake a cake last night to be ready for today. This morning, I attempted to frost the cake before taking it to school with me. However, as soon as I started to put icing on top, the cake literally crumbled to pieces. I was devastated! I had nothing to take with me to celebrate Jason's birthday. I am still not sure what happened, but that's how my day started. Other things went wrong throughout the day, and I was very busy. However, as I re-read the Scripture from this morning, I realize now that the earth was not removed, and the mountains (on which I live) at no point shook. The day really was not a tragedy. Now if God will be my refuge when things get THAT bad, why couldn't I rely on Him to be my strength and refuge today? Instead, I let my bad mood affect my day. God has proven Himself to be reliable in the past, so I had no reason to fear or be upset by the day's events. And in truth, the day wasn't all bad. My students were good, I accomplished a lot that needed to get done, and I had dinner with the other ranch singles to celebrate Jason's birthday. When I am able to put God back at the center of my focus, it is amazing how everything else gets put back into proper perspective as well.