Ps.90:1 "Lord you have been our dwelling place throughout all generations."
The comfort or discomfort of our outward lives depends largely upon the dwelling place of our bodies; and the comfort or discomfort of our inward life depends similarly upon the dwelling place of our souls. Our dwelling place is the place where we live, and not the place we merely visit. Our souls need a comfortable dwelling place even more than our bodies...and where the soul is full of peace and joy, outward surroundings are of comparatively little account.
The Lord declares that He has been our dwelling place in all generations, but the question is, Are we living in our dwelling place - or are we wandering, hungry, thirsty and faint? (Ps 107) The Lord urges his invitation upon us. "Abide in me, and I in you" and he goes on to tell us what are the blessed results of this abiding. The truth is, our souls were made for God. He is our natural home, and we can never be at rest anywhere else. "My soul longs, even faints for the courts of the Lord; my heart and my flesh cry out for the living God."
How shall we describe this divine dwelling place? David describes it when he says: "The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; in him will I trust; he is my shield, my high tower, my refuge, my Saviour." This means that when we live in our dwelling place we shall be perfectly safe and secure from every assault of every enemy. I do not mean no trials will come...but they cannot penetrate into the sanctury of the soul, and we may dwell in perfect peace even in the midst of life's fiercest storms.
The fortress we are called to is soft, tender, and full of comfort; "He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge." (Ps.91:4) Like a mother hen with her chicks, we are enfolded, protected and comforted. Here there is no fear. Say what the psalmist says "I will say of the Lord, he is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust."
From 'The God of all comfort' by Hannah Whithall Smith
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