When young children are introduced to someone new, they’re usually skeptical, sometimes re- fusing to look them in the eye or speak to them. A preschooler might hide behind her mother’s skirt, peeking out from what she considers to be a safety zone. After all, she can’t be sure the new person might not harm her. But she has confidence her parent will both defend and protect her.

God encourages us to do something similar in our relationship with him. He uses word pictures in Scripture to let us know he wants to be our protector. “Run to me,” he says. “Stand behind me. I’ll take good care of you.”

Psalm 32:7 says, “You, Lord, are my hiding place; you protect me from trouble.” He’s letting us know it’s ok to hide behind him. Actually, he’s encouraging it as a way to gain confidence when faced with an enemy, which could be anything from an attack on our character to words of discouragement. No matter the assailant, God says, “I will rescue those who love me. I will protect those who trust in my name.” (Psalm 91:14)

Behind God’s many scriptural requests that we hide behind him (like a frightened child behind his mother) is his desire to be near us. When we use him as a hiding place, we put ourselves tight up next to him.

Corrie ten Boom, imprisoned in Nazi Germany for hiding Jews and members of the resistance, wrote a book detailing her experiences. THE HIDING PLACE describes not just the secret room her family constructed in their home but also the way God hid them from trouble.

For example, when Corrie and the others at Ravensbruck had been stripped naked to enter the camp, she desperately wanted to keep her small Bible with her. She knew guards would beat her if she tried to trick them by holding onto it, but she also knew God could hide his Word as she went through the inspection.

That’s exactly what happened, and “somehow” the brutal guards missed seeing Corrie’s Bible. God wanted his Word to go into the concentration camp with her, so he hid it from the enemy. Afterwards, that Bible was the one thing that sustained Corrie, her sister, and many others through their torturous time.

It’s interesting to note that God-as-refuge doesn’t always prevent all pain or trouble. But it does mean he’ll guard us from soul-destruction and will often do spectacular things to let us know he’s nearby, going through each experience with us.

Corrie would wholeheartedly agree with the psalmist who wrote, “It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in humans.” (Psalm 118:8) And this is true for us, too, no matter what adversary we meet. Just as a child finds safety behind his mother’s skirt, we can find security when we step behind God and trust him to be our hiding place.

“As for God, his way is perfect…. He shields all who take refuge in him.” (2 Samuel 22:31)