In this world's misery there is only one sure refuge: God Himself. "He is a shield to all who trust in Him" (Psalm 18:30).
To "trust in" comes from a Hebrew word that means "to take refuge in" or "to hide in" or "to hide with." It suggests a secret place of concealment, a "hidey hole," as we used to say in Texas.
When we're exhausted by our efforts, when we're bewildered by our problems, when we're wounded by our friends, when we're surrounded by our foes, we can hide ourselves in God. There is no safety in this world. If we were to find safety here, we would never know the joy of God's love and protection. We would miss the happiness for which we were made.
The only safe place is God Himself. When storm clouds gather and calamities loom, we must run into His presence in prayer and remain there (Psalm 57:1).
George MacDonald said, "That man is perfect in faith who can come to God in the utter dearth of his feelings and desires, without a glow or an aspiration, with the weight of low thoughts, failures, neglects, and wandering forgetfulness, and say to Him, 'Thou art my refuge.'"
How safe and blessed we are!
— David H. Roper
O the sweet unfailing refuge
Of the everlasting arms;
In their loving clasp enfolded,
Nothing worries or alarms. —Hennessay
Safety is not found in the absence of danger but in the presence of God.