It’s been fifty years since the publication of the Hiding Place by Corrie Ten Boom, whose family risked their lives to hide Jews during the Nazi occupation of the Netherlands. They were arrested, separated, and forced into the death camps of World War II. Only Corrie survived and later on she would tell her story in more than 60 countries and would be honored by Israel for her family’s heroic sacrifice on behalf of more than 800 Jews saved by their efforts.
Her story tells of how faith triumphs over evil. When life’s circumstances threaten to destroy you and all that you stand for, the question becomes: Where is your hiding place? To whom or what do you turn to, to sustain you? The key scripture to which Corrie and her family turned to was Isaiah 32:2: "Each will be like a refuge from the wind and a shelter from the storm, like streams of water in a dry country…like the shade of a huge rock in a parched land." Psalm 32:7 reads: "You are my hiding place, You preserve me from trouble: You surround me with songs of deliverance."
In our present circumstances, we too are threatened by things that make us frightened and uneasy. Wildfires in the West, a massive earthquake (Haiti), torrential rains in multiple countries, a hostile force overwhelming millions of people (Afghanistan), the threatening Delta virus on the rise, the drying up of water along the Colorado River, and a host of other perils. We need to ask ourselves: “Where is my hiding place?”
Many people are suffering from mental health issues from the Covid virus. People are exhausted, fatigued, worn out by juggling children and work, and facing financial challenges. As a friend of mine recently said, “I wish I had a cave I could crawl into,”
For we Christians, our hiding place is Jesus. In Him, we have our hope. When Corrie Ten Boom watched her friends, neighbors, and strangers being pressed into cattle cars to be taken to the death camps, she kept her eyes on God’s love in Christ. That sustained her in the long deep dark days in front of her. She was sustained by a little Bible that she held close.
Psalm 61:3 perhaps puts it best: “For You have been a refuge for me, a tower of strength against the enemy.” We look to the cross of Christ where God defeated the Enemy and reassures us that in spite of what circumstances appear to be, God is still with us. He is our hiding place.
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One Minute is written by Pastor Ron Rehrer, MFT, Counselor for Church Workers.
E-mail at ron@ronrehrer.com. Phone 949.433.5182
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