A Strong Tower

S

everal years ago, before coming to seminary, I was visiting the local Christian bookstore in my hometown.  Now, I love bookstores and can spend hours, just browsing and looking without spending anything.  There is just a wonderful feeling about looking at different books and thumbing through them without anyone placing pressure on you to buy something.  I could spend literally hours doing this, and if I'm not careful, that is exactly what I end up doing.

However, on this particular day, it wasn't the books, the cards, or music which caught my eye.  As I was leaving the store, I saw a rather large poster hanging on the wall and that poster grabbed my attention. 

The poster was made up of three different pictures taken in succession.  The subject of the poster was a large lighthouse, located off the coast of France.    The series of photographs depicted a large wave forming around the lighthouse.  The first picture showed the wave's formation, the second picture showed the wave striking the lighthouse, and the third photograph showed the lighthouse after the wave had passed by.

The wave was enormous; however, what captured and riveted my attention was the image of a man standing at the door of the lighthouse.   There he was, as this huge wave struck the lighthouse, with a cup of coffee in his hand and a smile on his face.  Never have I seen a better picture of confidence and faith than this man displayed.  He was not afraid or worried and he showed no signs of panic as the wave struck the lighthouse.

Looking at this picture, I noticed a small plaque bearing a single verse of scripture.  The caption

came from Proverbs 18:10 and read, "The name of the Lord is a strong tower; The righteous run to it and are safe."  The scripture verse was a perfect match to the poster.  The gentleman in the lighthouse was not worried in the least.  He knew the lighthouse structure was sound, he knew it could withstand the large swells and waves of the ocean, and he had complete faith that the lighthouse would protect him. 

The symbol of his confidence was the coffee cup.  Instead of worrying about the wave and the storm that produced it, this man made himself at home in the storm.  He poured himself a cup of coffee, and settled in for a quiet evening at home.  The storm was on the outside of the tower, not on the inside.

What a marvelous picture of God!  Like the man in the poster, we are to have complete and utter confidence in our God.  No storm that arises, no winds that blow, and no waves from life's sea can shake the strong tower of our God.  He is our refuge, our hiding place, our security, our safety, and our comfort.  During the most difficult times of our lives, who among us has ever experienced anything but God's strength and comfort?

God, like that lighthouse, provides shelter and comfort for us.  The storms of life will come, the waves of adversity will beat against the tower, the winds will howl against it, but the tower of God's strength will never crumble and it will never fall.

M

y prayer for you today is that you will learn what it means to call upon the name of the Lord; to know that he is your strong tower and that you are safe in him.   May you rest peacefully in God’s strength today!