He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the LORD, “He is my refuge and my fortress; My God, in Him I will trust.” Psalm 91

This Psalm describes a secret place of the Lord that offers sweet fellowship with Him, as well as peace, protection, favor and healing for the believer. It is a secret hiding place of the Lord. Where is this place? I want to go there. It is a place that we can live in always as a believer, but we also need to visit during our quiet time. It can be compared to a child’s home. The child may leave a loving home to go places, but he knows his home is his refuge from the storm. This old adage, there is no place like home, has a lot of truth in it. Here is a new adage to consider: There is no place like the secret place of the Lord. Indeed, God is our refuge and strength; a very present help in times of trouble. Psalm 46:1a.

Jesus spent time in the secret place with his Father every day. If Jesus needed to spend time in prayer with the Father and He was without sin, how much more do we need time alone with God? No doubt the key to His public power was His private prayer time.

… He was alone praying. Luke 9:18a
…He… went up on the mountain to pray. Luke 9:28b

The Patriarchs spent time seeking God as they built an altar before Him. Often they would return to a place where they had met with God. Abraham met with God at Bethel. He called out to the Lord and the Lord called him out of a pagan nation to be the father of many nations. …there he built an altar to the LORD and called on the name of the LORD. GEN. 12:8B

Jacob was alone and met a man at Peniel. They wrestled until daybreak, and it turned out to be the Lord. Jacob said, “I will not let go of you until you bless me” (Gen. 32:26b). The Lord was pleased and said, “Your name shall now be called Israel, (Yiśrāʾēl – Hebrew: Prince of God) for you have struggled with God and with man and have prevailed” (Gen. 32:28a). Are we missing out on the blessing of the Lord when we don’t sit in His presence in the secret place? YES!

David was the sweet songwriter and singer of Israel, a soldier, a shepherd, a giant killer and the King. Who says a man can’t be both strong and gentle? This strong, gentle man cried out to the Lord in times of trouble, and his psalms have encouraged millions of people for thousands of years, including me (thanks, David!). David’s honesty before the Lord is very refreshing. Sometimes he complained about his troubles and questioned God. Other times he just praised Him. He also encouraged us to meditate on God’s word, sing, clap, shout, pray, cry, dance, walk, raise our hands and confess our sins to the Lord in the secret place. Mix it up a little bit. You and the Lord will enjoy it. Perhaps the word “quiet time” may be a misnomer. Quiet time doesn’t mean quiet in the sense of being quiet – no noise. It means being quiet in the sense of tuning out the noise of the world to tune in or invite in the presence of the Lord.

“For Me to Live is Christ.”
Our Father says to us ever so gently: “Be still and know that I am God” (Psalm 46.10). The world is like a ship that is constantly being driven by the winds and rains of an angry storm. It seeks to get us caught up in its chaos and fury. The winds of temptation and the troubled waters press against us and would seek to destroy us. The tide of this world is pushing against us with the force of hurricane winds. But our anchor holds if God holds the anchor. Peace is not the absence of a storm but knowing God’s presence in the storm. He leads us to peaceful waters! To the secret place. Where is this secret hiding place? It is in the presence of our Father in heaven. Yes, sometimes we need to leave the busi – ness of the daily grind and just spend time alone with God. How do we abide under the shadow of the Almighty? Simply rest in His grace by faith. Lord, You are my refuge and strength in times of trouble. I am so thankful that You tore down the wall to the holy of hollies by Your blood, Jesus, and I can enter into the secret hiding place. It is wonderful to be with You. You are enough for me, my life, peace and righteousness. You are awesome in all Your ways and I trust You. Great is Your faithfulness and Your loving kindness is better than life itself.

Let’s seek His face in the secret place!