Since we’ve been at home much more than normal these last few months when someone is gone it’s extra noticeable. My husband, who is still largely working from home, had to go out for work purposes one morning while I was taking my walk. When I returned it was strange to see just one vehicle in the driveway.
I paced around the empty space for a couple minutes while cooling down. After a moment, my attention shifted down to the driveway itself. I noticed the area where my husband parks is now a different color than the rest of the driveway. The sun was peaking through the tree limbs, but you can see it if you look closely at the photo. We have been home that much for that long. Funny how much the rest of the driveway has weathered during that time. It has taken the brunt of pouring rain, sweltering heat and activity. It’s darker and dirtier. Meanwhile, the protected area in the middle is lighter and cleaner.
That’s not rocket science but it resonated with me that day. Most everything holds up better with a little protection. Whether we’re talking about driveways or people, having some protection helps. It made me think about how difficult these last few months have been for so many people. It has been difficult to feel so helpless. It has been difficult to be at home so much and away from our friends and loved ones. It has been difficult to explain the current world to our children. It has been exceptionally difficult for people who have suffered job and financial losses that have bled to all parts of life. Sometimes it has been difficult to know the right thing to do. I hate that part.
But months into this situation I wonder if we can tell where we have been sheltered? Psalm 46:1 tells us that, “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.” Refuge literally means something providing shelter – shelter from pursuit, danger or trouble. Psalm 27:5 says, “For in the day of trouble He will keep me safe in His dwelling; He will hide me in the shelter of His tabernacle and set me high upon a rock.”
When I begin to look closely at my situation through these last few months, I can see where my edges have been exposed but mostly, I’ve been sheltered. I can see where God has protected me – from the little things to big. For instance, I bought my kids a small swimming pool for cheap at the end of last summer. It was sitting in a box in my garage while people were finding them sold out everywhere this spring. It’s been an absolute lifesaver. I had already been home and had work on hold when the schools closed, and I had to orchestrate the boys’ schedule of school at home. I’ll spare you a full list of individual examples, but I have them. God has been sheltering me.
This gives me hope and encouragement for the days ahead. It is difficult to fathom back-to-school scenarios. It is challenging to imagine how to go forward when normal seems so far away. It is downright exhausting to function in a world that is in the midst of such sustained uncertainty. However, when we focus on seeking God as our refuge instead of, well, anything else, He provides it.
It doesn’t mean that we don’t catch some stray drops of rain, but if we ask for His help and believe, He will not leave us out to be weathered, beaten and broken by the storm. Read on in Psalm chapter 27 to the great nugget that is verse 13. It says, “I would have lost heart, unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.” I didn’t write that, but I could have. We have all had ample opportunity to lose heart in the last few months. Don’t. Choose to believe God’s Word instead.
What about you? Look back over the last few months. Can you see where He has protected you? Where He has sheltered you from the storm? Friends don’t lose heart. Believe in the goodness of the Lord and the shelter He promises to provide. You may not realize just how much He is protecting you right now, but when the storm subsides you will.
