Psalm 142 Devotional

Key Verses: 4-5 "(4) Look on my right hand and see, for there is no one who acknowledges me; refuge has failed me, no one cares for my soul. (5) I cried out to You, O LORD; I said, 'You are my refuge, my Portion in the land of the living."

Spurgeon Insights: "It is something to have Jehovah for our refuge, but it is everything to have Him for our portion."

There are a lot of people who want to claim God as their refuge. Even people who aren't followers of Jesus claim some type of protection from God. When suffering comes into their life they say they are hoping God will help them. They don't even know what to call God but they hope that He will be their refuge if He truly exists.

In Christianity things don't look much different sometimes. Most evangelicals are really happy to call God their refuge. They believe Jesus is their Savior. He is the One who helps, shields, and protects them when they are in need.

What is uncommon is to hear people, even Christians, get excited about God being their "portion" as David does in Psalm 142. He wrote this when he was on the run. People were trying to kill him. At such a time David didn't merely take comfort from the fact that God was his refuge, but he was comforted with the reality that God was also his portion. God was the gift he had no matter what people were trying to take from him.

When I have God, I have everything. I have Jesus as my Savior, but I also have Jesus as my portion. When I suffer, both of these truths are equally important. Jesus will protect me from absolute destruction in a sense because He is my refuge. If I lose everything else this world has to offer, I have Jesus as my superior possession anyway. If I really get both sides of this I will be able to stand against the attacks of my enemies, both spiritual and physical, no matter what type of opposition they bring against me. You will too. Christ wants to be your refuge, to be sure. But even further, He wants to be your prized possession, your portion. Pray with me…

Father, we pray that You would open our eyes to see You not only as our refuge, as important as that is, but also our portion. Divorce our hearts from taking refuge in temporary things. Separate our hearts from holding anything as a greater gift than Your presence in our lives. In Jesus name we pray. Amen.