We live in a world that celebrates busyness and productivity, yet many of us feel burned out and empty. Sometimes we feel like we’re barely holding it together. All these demands on our time and on our life stack up, and no matter how hard you try to push through, telling yourself it’ll be easier once this season of busyness is over, the pressure doesn’t ease.
In working through Psalm 62 we don’t find a quick fix or productivity hacks, but we find something deeper, something that speaks into this reality: rest in the refuge of God.
In my last post we explored the idea of finding our true rest in God alone, using the phrase ‘Rest in the Rock’ as somewhat of a reminder of this. Flowing on from this we find Psalm 62 helpful as we navigate the pressure cooker of life, reminding us that trusting in God as our refuge provides rest for us.
The Pressure Cooker
Over Summer, here in Melbourne, we’ve already had plenty of days that have hit 30 degrees or more. Days where the heat is sapping our energy, where if we’re out in the heat of the day for too long we are drained more than usual and only find relief in our iced drinks air conditioned living rooms. It sometimes surprises us that a heatwave, even a couple of days in a row, can bring on a sense of weariness.
The psalmist David captures this kind of weariness in Psalm 62 when he writes,
Surely the lowborn are but a breath, the highborn are but a lie. If weighed on a balance, they are nothing; together they are only a breath. (Psalm 62:9)
If we’re honest this verse can be a bit of a downer. It gives a picture of the fleeting life. No matter our position or status, no matter the things we chase after like wealth, recognition, and achievement, it’ll all be gone. It’s the same for all.
When we are faced with a heatwave we go searching for shade or a cool room. When we are inside with the blinds drawn, or under the air conditioner, or even in the pool, the sun is still there. The heat is still there. What those things do is shield us and offer us relief. This is what it means to take refuge in God. It doesn’t mean the pressure of life will vanish, but he gives our soul a place to breathe, to rest, to cool down again.
The False Refuge
But, when the pressures of life stack up, one upon another, we don’t always run to God first. Often we turn to those temporary comforts.
These days it’s most likely going to be scrolling through social media or playing around on our phones. But it could go the other way, being focussed so much on work or picking up a project that stops us from being involved in others responsibilities in life. These ‘refuges’ dull that heatwave of pressure but leave us just as empty as before.
In v10 the psalmist warns about these false refuges when he writes,
Do not trust in extortion or put vain hope in stolen goods; though your riches increase, do not set your heart on them. (Psalm 62:10)
I doubt most of us are engaging in extortion or stealing or fraud, but the bigger point is about what we put our trust in. Whether it is money, status, performance, or distraction, these things are not given to us to sustain us. In fact, they are as fleeting as our own lives. Our search for rest and fulfilment in these things soon become as exhausting as the other pressures of life.
God Our Refuge
Instead, Psalm 62 offers up a better way.
Trust in him at all times, you people; pour out your hearts to him, for God is our refuge. (Psalm 62:8)
We have here an invitation into an honest relationship with God.
It’s funny how we often put aside our raw and honest selves, hiding those things deep within our hearts to God. He knows them anyway, but something about the sin and brokenness of our soul makes us shield ourselves from the guilt and shame we know sits there. We’d like to present polished versions of ourselves to God, but instead we’re like Adam and Eve just after they’ve eaten from the forbidden tree, hiding our true selves from the God who loves us so.
God, after all, is the only refuge in life that we can come to in total abandon. He is the one who will hear us, have compassion and kindness toward us, when we ‘pour out our hearts’ to him. Like a dam that must release the overflow, our hearts full of the pressures of life are invited to release and freedom when we acknowledge our trust in him.
Rest In Jesus
This theme of refuge finds its fulfilment in Jesus. In Matthew 11:28-30, Jesus gives this powerful invitation:
Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.
This is the kind of rest we need—not just relief from our circumstances but a deep, soul-level peace that comes from knowing we are held by him who loves us.
Jesus doesn’t promise to remove life’s pressures, but he does offer to walk with us through them. When we trust him as our refuge, we find freedom from striving to prove our worth or control everything ourselves.
Psalm 62 reminds us that our true refuge is in God. He is the shade in the heat, and the rest our souls long for.
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