A Safe Place To
Hide
February 17, 2003
Duct tape--used for everything from removing lint
from wool, to tying up al-Qaida suspects, to rigging an
air-purification system for the ill-fated Apollo 13--has become
the hottest selling product at Home Depot and other hardware
stores. All it took was a suggestion from the Department of
Homeland Security that people seal off rooms with duct tape and
plastic sheeting to protect themselves from terrorist poisons
and germs. One man in the Midwest actually wrapped his entire
home with plastic and sealed it with duct tape.
The good news is a lot of homes now have enough
duct tape to last a long time. The bad news, according to Dr.
Grant Higginson, the health officer who leads Oregon's
antibioterrorism efforts, is that "it's difficult to think of
terrorists scenarios" that would make duct tape useful.
I suspect some people feel more secure knowing
they've got the plastic and duct tape handy even if it offers
little or no protection. The author of Psalm 46 understood the
fear people struggle with in the face of impending danger. And
he offered a place of refuge that would prove impregnable in the
face of the fiercest attack.
He said, "God is our refuge and strength, an
ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though
the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the
sea, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake
with their surging" (Psalm 46:1-3).
Notice that God is our "refuge." The word "refuge"
is used elsewhere in reference to a rock badger's lair. It's a
hole in the ground where the badger flees when he sees the
shadow of a hawk. But God is also our "strength." He enables us
to carry on when we feel like giving up. Of course, a lair would
do a badger no good if he couldn't get into it. And strength
would provide no help if it couldn't be accessed. That's why the
psalmist said God is "ever present." He's easy to find when we
need him. He's always close by.
What kind of confidence does God provide? The kind
that erases fear in the face of an earthquake so devastating the
tallest mountain crumbles into the sea. God offers the kind of
peace we'll never find at Home Depot.
This week, and in the weeks to come, as you
contemplate the threat of terrorism, run to God. He's closer
than your shadow. If your children, or those you love, suffer
from anxiety, take them to the one who will guard them for
eternity.
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