Even If

God is our refuge and strength, 

an ever-present help in trouble.

Therefore we are unafraid,

even if the earth gives way,

even if the mountains tumble

into the depths of the sea,

even if its waters rage and foam,

And mountains shake at its turbulence. 

Psalm 46:1-3 (CJB)

Each January, I begin another journey through Psalms. This year, by the time I landed on #46, the ‘even if’ had happened. My sister — a fearless faith-filled firecracker —had left our world. I’m sure she ran full speed into the arms of her Lord. The thought of her tapping piano keys and strumming harp strings in the presence of her King gives comfort. But on that foggy Friday morning, the news of her sudden death quite literally left me breathless. Her loved ones must now somehow navigate these uncharted waters —voyage onward amidst what feels so incredibly foreign. 

An unpacking of Psalm 46 reveals various powerful names of God, the word “selah” (implying pause), and, words that may ring familiar: “be still and know that I am God” (v10). 

On that day’s reading, two appearances of the Hebrew word “immanu” (“im”) stood out to me. Oh His kindness. There, weeks beyond Christmas, I was lovingly reminded of Immanuel— God With Us. My eyes returned to the first three verses. As I sipped a second cup of tea I let Him catch my tears and His words sink in.

“God  is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.” (46:1)

In the original Hebrew, the verse expresses that our God – creative, sovereign, supreme in nature – is a shelter of safety, a prevailing source of power, exceedingly ready to be found, passionately coming to our aid in the midst of adversity.

Pause to imagine it—the Creator of the universe rushing to shelter you.

“Therefore we are unafraid,” (46:2a)

Here we see the result of staking claim to the promise of Psalm 46. Because God is our safe refuge, our prevailing strength in every trial that you or I face, we can live without fear.

I love the cadence of verses that come after—how repetition adds emphasis:

“even if the earth gives way,

even if the mountains tumble 

into the depths of the sea,

even if its waters rage and foam,

and mountains shake at its

turbulence.”

(46:2b,3)

The Israelites would have been familiar with natural disasters. They also would have understood these words as a metaphor for enemy invasion, crumbling walls, or toppling kingdoms—threats they had faced for centuries. For you and I, in this day and age, perhaps it’s as if God whispers “There is no calamity in which I will not intensely, speedily come to your aid, no affliction in which I will not be found by you, no heartbreaking circumstance in which you will not be helped, by Me.”

And so, my friend, in the ‘even ifs’ of life, may God be the one we run to. May we know Him as that mighty fortress Luther wrote of— that “bulwark never failing.”1 May we, when tossed about by waters that rage and foam, grab onto Jesus—the Rock on which we can stand. For, as another hymnist so truly stated, “all other ground is sinking sand.”2

My sister was a gifted musician. In memory of her, I’d like to close with an instrumental version of “A Mighty Fortress” performed by “Bow and Ivory.”3 Perhaps you’d like to open to Psalm 46 as you listen. Click on YouTube, or Spotify to hear it.

Cape Spartel, Morocco, Jennye Bock

1 Luther, Martin. “A Mighty Fortress.” 1529

2 Mote, Edward. “My Hope is Built on Nothing Less.” 1834

3 Barr, Kyle, and Angulo, Sebastian. Bow and Ivory: “A Mighty Fortress.” 2017