Good morning, church family.

We can all say this morning, it is well, it is well with our soul. What a beautiful hymn to sing.

And it goes well with our series, Trusting God in Difficult Times. And the story behind that song is always worth sharing.

I know most of us know the story behind this hymn. But I love what Horatio Sparford said

“I am glad to be able to trust my Lord when it costs me something.” Horatio Sparford knew something about life’s unexpected challenges. He was a successful attorney and real estate investor who lost a fortune in a great Chicago fire of 1871. Around the same time, his beloved four-year-old son died of scarlet fever. Thinking a vacation would do his family some good, he sent his wife and four daughters on a ship to England, planning to join them after he finished some pressing business at home. However, while crossing the Atlantic Ocean, the ship was involved in a terrible collision and sunk. More than 200 people lost their lives, including all four of Horatio Sparford’s precious daughters. His wife, Anna, survived the tragedy. Upon arriving in England, she sent a telegram to her husband that began, “Saved alone, what shall I do?” Horatio immediately set sail for England.

At one point during his voyage, the captain of the ship, aware of the tragedy that had struck this family, summoned Horatio to tell him that they were now passing over the spot where the shipwreck had occurred. As he thought about his daughter’s words of comfort, and hope filled his heart and mind. He wrote them down and they have since become the well-beloved hymn that we sung this morning. When peace like a river attendeth my way, when sorrows like sea billows roll, whatever my lot thou hast taught me to know, it is well, it is well with my soul.

Only a believer that trusts in God can say that in the midst of hardship. Trust in God in difficult times. Trust in God in difficult times.

And this morning, whatever you are going through, we can all say in Christ, it is well with our soul. We continue our journey in a series in the Psalms, trusting God in difficult time. We started last week with Psalm 1, ‘Two Ways.’

And this week, we are looking at Psalm 11. Every time I read this Psalm, God has placed this on my heart. God’s got you.

And I keep saying this to myself in the past few weeks of preparation. Whatever I’m going through, God’s got me. God’s got you.

Trusting Him in difficult times. I believe Ross encouraged us as we journey through the Psalms for us to know that God is real. For us to know that God sees our circumstances.  For us to know that God allows difficulty. And He’s walking with us and for us to trust Him. And as I prayed and as I studied this Psalm, I believe this new series, Church Family, is meant to encourage you and I to trust God more deeply.

And for us to meditate on His word, we learn from Psalm 1, “Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in a way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers, but whose delight is in the law of the Lord and who meditates on His law day and night.” And when we meditate on His word and what it promises, it gives us strength and hope in difficult times.

Turn to Psalm 11 in the Old Testament. There are 150 Psalms, but this morning we’re looking at Psalm 11. Only seven verses.

And I pray that as we go through the Psalm, that the Lord will speak to you this morning. That the Lord will comfort you with His word, will encourage you with His word. It’s going to be challenging. There will be conviction. And I pray that we’ll be open to hear from God wholeheartedly.

Follow me as we read Psalm 11, but I’d like to recite Psalm 11 for us this morning. That’s something I love to do, memorizing. And I praise God for the good memories, and I’m making use of it while I can.

So, Psalm 11, only seven verses, but there are nine Psalms for us to journey in. Psalm 1, Psalm 11, Psalm 16, Psalm 23, Psalm 42, Psalm 126, Psalm 46, Psalm 88, Psalm 91. I love reading all those nine Psalms in one sitting.

And that’s what I do daily. I just love reading them over and over, at the same time, from Psalm 1 to Psalm 91. I’ll be reading from the NIV. Let’s hear from God this morning.

Psalm 11:1-7 In the LORD I take refuge. How then can you say to me: “Flee like a bird to your mountain. For look, the wicked bend their bows, they set their arrows against the strings to shoot from the shadows at the upright in heart. When the foundations are being destroyed, what can the righteous do?” The LORD is in his holy temple; the LORD is on his heavenly throne. He observes everyone on earth; his eyes examine them. The LORD examines the righteous, but the wicked, those who love violence, he hates with a passion. On the wicked he will rain fiery coals and burning sulfur; a scorching wind will be their lot. For the LORD is righteous, he loves justice; the upright will see his face.”

In the Lord I take refuge. It’s a Psalm of David.

In verse one to three, we find it there that David is advised to flee like a bird. David’s advisors were counseling him to flee like a bird to your mountain. His enemies were prepared to strike, and people were encouraging him to flee.

We all know that birds flee very quickly as soon as they can sense danger to a high place where threats can’t get to them. But here we find it this morning. In the Lord I take refuge.

In the opening of this Psalm, David the Psalmist established, this is who I’m gonna trust. And I wanna encourage and I wanna ask you this question this morning. Who is your refuge? In whom do you place your trust? Who is our refuge? This morning, David is teaching us, in the Lord I take refuge.

His advisors, his friends, his people, they meant well. They advised him to run for safety. They advised him to take the matter into his own hands and protect himself.

But to David, he trusted in God as his refuge. Being anointed as king did not make him immune to injustice and hatred from others. And it appears that his advisors may have had the best intentions, but David wasn’t ready to run from the adversity because he knew who his God is.

In the Lord I take refuge. How then can you say to me, flee like a bird to your mountain? Be careful with the advice that we give to people, especially when they go through difficult times. But also, for us to be careful with the advice that we listen to.

They meant well. Run for your safety.

Jesus went through the same thing. In Matthew 16, when he predicts his death, Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him from verse 21 to 23. Never Lord, he said, this shall never happen to you. Jesus turned and said to Peter, get behind me, Satan.  You are a stumbling block to me. You do not have in mind the concerns of God, but merely human concerns.

God knew the situation and David’s trouble wasn’t hidden from him.

We all know what King David went through. He was hunted by Saul. He fled from his life, but not out of fear, but reverence of God, because he didn’t want to kill the anointed one, Saul at the time.

His son rebelled against him. He went through so much difficulties, but God allowed him to go through those to test his faith and to grow him. And we’ll get to that.

David responded with faith to the advice of fear. I like how Charles Spurgeon puts it, “David seems to have felt the force of the advice, for it came home to his soul, but yet he would not yield, but would rather dare the danger than exhibit a distrust in the Lord his God.”  He would rather dare the danger than exhibit a distrust in the Lord his God.

My eyes are on the Lord. My eyes are not in my situations. His advisors came to him, look, your enemies, they are powerful. They are ready to strike, run for your life. And here’s David “in the Lord, I take refuge.”

Let this be our prayer when we go through difficult times.  Whatever comes my way in the Lord, I take refuge. In the NLT, I trust in the Lord for protection. Nothing is hidden from God.

He allows us to go through that. But to David, he would rather dare the danger than exhibit a distrust in the Lord his God. In the Lord, I take refuge.

When the foundations are being destroyed, what can the righteous do? We can choose to trust in God, even when the foundations are being destroyed. When prayer engages God on our side and when faith secures the fulfillment of the promise, what cause can be there for flight? However cruel and mighty our enemies. Because in Romans 8:31, “what then shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?” If God is for us, who can be against us? In the Lord, I take refuge. I trust in the Lord for protection. God’s got me no matter what. When the foundations are being destroyed and we are tempted to flee, if you feel like running away, run to God. What can the righteous do when the foundations are being destroyed? We continue to have faith that God is in control.

We continue to pray that God knows. We continue to believe and trust in Him no matter the circumstances. We’ll be like David.  He did not look at his circumstances. I’m gonna keep my eyes on the Lord. I’m not gonna look at my situations. I’m gonna look at God because He is my refuge. He is my safe place. He is my security. In the Lord, I take refuge, even when the foundations are being destroyed. Let’s keep our eyes always, always, always on the Lord.

I love that story in 2 Chronicles 20, King Jehoshaphat.

The Moabites and the Ammonites with some of the Meunites came to wage war against Jehoshaphat. Alarmed, he resolved to inquire of the Lord, and he proclaimed a fast for all Judah. But I love his prayer in verse 12. “We do know what to do, but our eyes are on you.” When we do not know what to do, let’s fix our eyes on God. In the Lord, I take refuge.

Therefore, I trust in Him. And these are the reasons to trust God. From verse 4 to 7, here’s David.

These are the reasons why I trust in God. God is still on the throne in verse 4. God is in His holy temple. God is on His heavenly throne.

God is still on the throne, church family. Therefore, trust in Him. He’s got you.

God is in His holy temple. We are the temple of God. His presence is here with us.

He is also on His heavenly throne. God is still in control. God is still reigning.

God rules. God is sovereign. He’s our King. And He’s still on the throne. And nothing is hidden from Him. His eyes are not blind to what we are going through. Let’s trust in Him because our God is still on the throne.