Psalm 27 - NKJV 1 The LORD is my light and my salvation; Whom shall I fear? The LORD is the strength of my life; Of whom shall I be afraid? 2 When the wicked came against me To eat up my flesh, My enemies and foes, They stumbled and fell. 3 Though an army may encamp against me, My heart shall not fear; Though war may rise against me, In this I will be confident. 4 One thing I have desired of the LORD, That will I seek: That I may dwell in the house of the LORD All the days of my life, To behold the beauty of the LORD, And to inquire in His temple. 5 For in the time of trouble He shall hide me in His pavilion; In the secret place of His tabernacle He shall hide me; He shall set me high upon a rock. 6 And now my head shall be lifted up above my enemies all around me; Therefore I will offer sacrifices of joy in His tabernacle; I will sing, yes, I will sing praises to the LORD. 7 Hear, O LORD, when I cry with my voice! Have mercy also upon me, and answer me. 8 When You said, “Seek My face,” My heart said to You, “Your face, LORD, I will seek.” 9 Do not hide Your face from me; Do not turn Your servant away in anger; You have been my help; Do not leave me nor forsake me, O God of my salvation. 10 When my father and my mother forsake me, Then the LORD will take care of me. 11 Teach me Your way, O LORD, And lead me in a smooth path, because of my enemies. 12 Do not deliver me to the will of my adversaries; For false witnesses have risen against me, And such as breathe out violence. 13 I would have lost heart, unless I had believed That I would see the goodness of the LORD In the land of the living. 14 Wait on the LORD; Be of good courage, And He shall strengthen your heart; Wait, I say, on the LORD! A Psalm of David.

Hide Me In Your Pavilion Pavilions are nice places but we don't often think of them as shelter from anything but the sun. I remember an occasion when a pavilion saved me from getting a beating. We were visiting our High School swimming pool on one of those hot oppressive summer days. My brother, Mike, and I were together that day. As we stood in line to enter the pool a young black kid from the east side of town was huckstering the merits of his white friend, who he claimed had the toughest stomach in the world. He challenged anyone to a fight with the guy. Now I was a shy guy, but I was known for my iron stomach and I wasn't one to back down from a fight. He simply wanted to see if anyone was man enough to take on his friend. So when he challenged me "in my face" I said I wasn't afraid to fight him but didn't really want to. Well, that was the cause for quite a stir. The fight was arranged to take place right after the hour swim in the pool. We entered the school and did our swimming. I remember even conversing with the young guy I was supposed to fight. It wasn't a grudge match, just a challenge to see who was the toughest. I left the swimming pool thinking nothing would come of this "fight." Was I ever wrong! Outside were gathered a crowd of about 50 kids from the east end of town. The east end was the tough, poorer side of town. The one black guy with the big mouth was again the ringmaster huckstering the fight. As he circled for the kill you could tell that he was the one wanting the fight. Neither I nor my white friend wanted to fight. It was obvious now that this black guy orchestrated this exhibition to show off his own stuff. So my new friend and I just circled each other waiting for the first one to make an aggressive move. Neither of us did. So the black kid stepped in and showed him how by suddenly punching me in the lip. Wow! What a shock. It swelled up immediately. I said something like that's it this fight isn't about me and the other guy. I turned to get towel and stuff from my brother and he was gone. (Smart guy!) There I was now the center of attention with 50 fighters all wanting their turn to beat up on this white guy. When I realized the predicament I was in I did the smart thing. I ran. I was a pretty fast runner and figured I could out run and out maneuver any of them until I found a safe place to hide. Nearby was a tot-lot, a children's summer playground with a supervisor who I knew. I ran as fast as I could with 50 thugs chasing me, finally realizing I could not escape all of them I ran into the tot-lot jumped up on the main table and turned to face my persecutors, with both fists clinched I yelled, "Get out of here and leave me alone!" The supervisor seeing my plight exerted all authority and sent the gang packing for home. That pavilion became my salvation, my place of safety and refuge from the storm. Where do you run to when you are in trouble? Quote from Spurgeon "He shall give me the best of shelter in the worst of danger. The royal pavilion was erected in the centre of the army, and around it all the mighty men kept guard at all hours; thus in that divine sovereignty which almighty power is sworn to maintain, the believer peacefully is hidden, hidden not by himself furtively, but by the king, who hospitably entertains him. New King James Bible, Bible Gateway Index Our Devotional Index Spurgeon - Treasury of David