10 Ways To Experience Refuge On A Busy Day

1. In five minutes, list as many attributes of God as you can. Then reflect on how each relates to your situation.

2. Post a list of God's attributes on your refrigerator at home or filing cabinet at work. When you see the list, stop and praise God for one specific attribute.

3. On your calendar, write down a different attribute or name of God on each day of the month. Each day, prayerfully reflect on the "attribute of the day" as you go through your routine.

4. Create your own "flip calendar" of the promises of God using spiral-bound index cards. As you read your Bible, jot down the relevant promises you find on one side of each index card. Then set the spiral-bound collection in a visible place such as a desk or windowsill. During moments of anxiety or worry, prayerfully read and reflect on the displayed promise.

5. Divide a piece of paper into two columns. Write down what is troubling you the most in the left column. In the right column, list everything you know to be true about God. Now fold the paper and raise it to God as an offering of trust. Then throw the paper away.

6. In times of peace, make a list of all the ways you are actively relying on God. Then thank Him for each provision.

7. Find a picture or model of a stone fortress. Label each part of the castle with a name or attribute of God. One tower might be labeled "love"; another, "strength." The drawbridge might be "Savior"; the roof, "shelter"; and so on. Put it in a visible place to remind you of the nature of your fortress God.

8. Using adhesive-backed notepaper, write down specific passages on refuge such as Psalm 46:1; Psalm 62:5–6; or Psalm 91:1–2. Then post the refuge passages on your computer, your dashboard, your bathroom mirror, or any other places you're likely to see them often. In the busyness of your day, take a few moments to read the posted passages three times slowly, and meditate on the truth of what you just read.

9. Read Psalm 62 each night at bedtime for a week.

10. Designate a "refuge" place. It might be a chair, your car, your den, under your favorite shade tree—anywhere you can regularly step away from your normal activities for a few minutes. In the midst of your daily stresses, go to the place you've identified for a five-minute refuge break. Try this daily for a week.



Discipleship Journal Issue #117 May/June 2000 by Joan Esherick WWW.navpress.com