Seeking Refuge
By Tonya King
This morning I was reading in Psalms 17 and verse 7 jumped out at me. It’s a Psalm of David asking God to protect him from his enemies. During his prayer, he addressed Jesus as the “Savior of all who seek refuge”. This spoke to me in a powerful way.
I’ve always known Jesus was my Savior, but I never really thought about the fact that, He is Savior to all who seek refuge in Him. How many times have we tried to find refuge rom our illnesses and the complications these illnesses bring to our lives in our own power? We think “I can do this. I’m stronger than these symptoms and I can take care of this on my own”.
I know that when I was first diagnosed in 2003, that is exactly how I thought. I felt that the diagnosis was completely wrong and that I didn’t have Bipolar. I promptly went out to live my life proving to everyone that I was fine, and I did not need anyone to help me, because I wasn’t ill. Well, that lasted about two weeks before it became very apparent that I, indeed, was quite ill. But did I cry out to Jesus for refuge? Nope. I went about acting as if I was the savior of my own life and I, alone, had control over everything. As you can guess, that didn’t work very well either.
It wasn’t until I started seeking Jesus as my refuge that I started to turn the corner into wellness. I am embarrassed to say that this revelation that I needed Jesus to bring healing and comfort to my exhausted mind took a few years. Yep…years! But, as soon as I began to seek refuge in Him, everything changed. I still had dark days. I still had manic episodes. But my perspective had changed. I knew that without Jesus as my refuge, I would just be out there in the wind of my own mind, flailing. I couldn’t live that way.
The most wonderful part of this Psalm is that is says “all” who seek refuge. This includes, well, all. Jesus doesn’t bring some refuge or bring refuge to those most deserving. No, he said all. This should bring great comfort to everyone who feels that they are unworthy of this kind of love. I know we often feel, because of our illnesses, we are undeserving, discounted, and pushed to the fringes, and a lot of times, we convince ourselves this will never change.
But Jesus is faithful and if we seek refuge, He will give it. How many of us just need a rest? A break forms the endless struggle to gain a sense of normalcy in our lives. Well, Jesus is inviting us to come and rest in Him. He is our refuge. He loves us. He is for us. So, when we feel as if we cannot take one more step, we need to get on our knees and simply seek Him. Our refuge lies in Him and Him alone.
Tonya King is a Writer, Speaker and Mental Health Coach. She is the founder of Faithful in the Midst ministries which is a ministry devoted to the healing and wholeness of mental illnesses through faith in Jesus Christ.
In 2003, Tonya was diagnosed with Bipolar disorder and has been advocating to include faith in Christ as part of treatment and wellness plans. She has been walking with the Lord most of her life but has drawn very close since her diagnosis and truly lives her faith.
Tonya lives in Perry, Ohio, USA with her husband of 31 years, Kevin. She has four children, two girls and two boys. She is available for speaking and coaching engagements.
Read more about Tonya
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