One of my favorite rock singers is Tom Petty. I’m not gonna lie…I was one sad 80’s girl the day he died. I love so many of his songs, but “Refugee” stands out as one of my favorites. Can you hear that one-of-a-kind Petty guitar tone as that iconic voice sings these timeless lyrics? (If you can’t, you might want to take a listen.)
Somewhere, somehow somebody
Must have kicked you around some
Tell me why you want to lay there
Revel in your abandon
Honey, it don’t make no difference to me baby
Everybody’s had to fight to be free
You see you don’t have to live like a refugee (don’t have to live like a refugee)
Now baby you don’t have to live like a refugee (don’t have to live like a refugee) No
Somewhere, somehow somebody
Must have kicked you around some
Who knows, maybe you were kidnapped
Tied up, taken away and held for ransom, honey
It don’t really matter to me baby
Everybody’s had to fight to be free
You see you don’t have to live like a refugee (don’t have to live like a refugee)
No you don’t have to live like a refugee (don’t have to live like a refugee)
You don’t have to live like a refugee (don’t have to live like a refugee)
Now, I do love this song and agree with Petty in the context of the lyrics themselves. But in the context of my Christian life, of my walk with God, sadly, I’m going to have to cry false. Why? Because I want to live as a refugee!
Dictionary.com defines a refugee as “a person who flees for refuge or safety, especially to a foreign country, as in time of political upheaval, war, etc.” Some synonyms for refugee are foreigner, alien, prodigal, outcast. The UN Refugee Agency defines a refugee as “someone who has been forced to flee his or her country because of persecution, war or violence….Most likely, they cannot return home or are afraid to do so.” If we are using our Mr. Potato Head worldly eyes, these definitions sound appalling, and rightfully so. But what if we exchange those worldly eyes for spiritual eyes? What if we look at being a refugee the way God does?
Throughout the Bible, God’s people, a people that includes you and me, are described as refugees, as foreigners, outcasts from this world we live in. We are those who have had to flee our own “country,” this sinful world, because, when we chose God, we became foreigners; we became outcasts. But, on the other side of that, Peter declares that we “are [instead] a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people (1 Peter 2:9). My personal favorite translation of this is the KJV….we are “a peculiar people.” I don’t know about you, but there is just something about being peculiar that resonates with me. Paul also writes that now we “are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God” (Ephesians 2:19). We are described as those who have taken refuge in Him.
To take refuge means to seek “a place of shelter, protection, or safety” (Dictionary.com). I like that…. I like knowing that I can find shelter, safety, and protection in God. And the Bible is full of this truth! There are at least 88 references to God being our refuge in scripture, many in the Psalms. Here are a few examples.
“God is our refuge and strength,
A very present help in trouble.
Therefore we will not fear, though the earth should change
And though the mountains slip into the heart of the sea;
Though its waters roar and foam,
Though the mountains quake at its swelling pride.”
(Psalm 46:1-3~ the sons of Korah )
“The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer,
My God, my rock, in whom I take refuge” (Psalm 18:2~ King David).
“I will say to the Lord, “My refuge and my fortress, My God, in whom I trust!” (Psalm 91:2~ Moses).
“For You have been a defense for the helpless,
A defense for the needy in his distress,
A refuge from the storm” (Isaiah 25:4~ the prophet Isaiah).
We“have fled for refuge” to the Lord (Hebrews 6:18).
I love those scriptures! I love knowing that, when I’m in the midst of a dangerous situation, a scary situation, an impossible situation, I have a refuge I can run to! I have a hiding place…a shelter. I rejoice in that fact! How about you? Can you picture it? Can you believe it? Can you hold on to that truth today? Can you, as the winds are roaring…as the sea is raging…as the enemies are advancing….run to that place of refuge, that place where you can be safe? Can you rejoice and take comfort in the fact that you are a refugee?