I (Shanee) am sharing one of my biggest lessons from studying the Psalms in 2021- God is our refuge and wants us to run to Him with our guilt, shame, fear, and every negative emotion and need, so that He can minister to us with His steadfast love. We should not try to shut down our emotions or shame ourselves for being needy; instead we should take them to God, confident that His response is ALWAYS steadfast love and faithfulness for His children. He’s always saying, “Come closer!”

Scriptures on God as our refuge: 
-Ps. 18:30- “He is a shield for all those who take refuge in Him.”
-Ps. 31:7, 10- “You are a hiding place for me; you preserve me from trouble; you surround me with shouts of deliverance… Many are the sorrows of the wicked, but steadfast love surrounds the one who trusts in the Lord.” 
-Ps. 37:39-40- “The salvation of the righteous is from the Lord; he is their stronghold in the time of trouble. The Lord helps them and delivers them; he delivers them from the wicked and saves them, b/c they take refuge in him.”
-Ps. 46:1-2- “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.”
-Ps. 61- “Lead me to the rock that is higher than I, for you have been my refuge, a strong tower against the enemy. Let me dwell in your tent forever! Let me take refuge under the shelter of your wings!”
Ps. 62- “For God alone my soul waits in silence; from him comes my salvation. He alone is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall not be greatly shaken…Trust in him at all times, O people; pour out your heart before him; God is a refuge for us.”
-Ps. 91- He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shade of the almighty. I will say to the Lord, my refuge and my fortress…B/c He holds fast to me in love, I will deliver him; I will protect him, b/c he knows my name…I will rescue him and honor him.”
-Ps. 119:114- “You are my hiding place and my shield; I hope in your word.”

Scriptures on God’s steadfast love:
-Ps. 5:7- “But I, through the abundance of your steadfast love, will enter your house. I will bow down toward your holy temple in the fear of you.”
-Ps. 5:12- “For you bless the righteous, O Lord; you cover him with favor as with a shield.” 
-Ps. 17:7- “Wondrously show your steadfast love, O Savior of those who seek refuge from their adversaries at your right hand.” 
-Ps. 18:19- “He rescued me from my strong enemy and from those who hated me, for they were too mighty for me. They confronted me in the day of my calamity, but the Lord was my support. He brought me out into a broad place; He rescued me, b/c He delighted in me.”
-Ps. 25:10, 13-14- “All the paths of the Lord are steadfast love and faithfulness, for those who keep his covenant and his testimonies… His soul shall abide in well-being, and his offspring shall inherit the land. The friendship of the Lord is for those who fear him, and he makes known to them his covenant.” 
-Ps. 26:3, 8- “For your steadfast love is before my eyes, and I walk in your faithfulness…O Lord, I love the habitation of your house and the place where your glory dwells.” 
-Ps. 31:16, 19, 21- “Make your face shine on your servant; save me in your steadfast love…Oh, how abundant is your goodness, which you have stored up for those who fear you and worked for those who take refuge in you… Blessed be the Lord, for he has wondrously shown his steadfast love to me when I was in a besieged city.” 
-Ps. 33:18-22- “Behold, the eye of the Lord is on those who fear him, on those who hope in his steadfast love.”
-Ps. 36:7-10- “How precious is your steadfast love, O God! The children of mankind take refuge in the shadow of your wings.”
-Ps. 40:11- “As for you, O Lord, you will not restrain your mercy from me; your steadfast love and your faithfulness will ever preserve me!” 
-Ps. 63:3- “B/c your steadfast love is better than life, my lips will praise you.”
-Ps. 86- “Gladden the soul of your servant, for to you, O Lord, do I lift up my soul. For you, O Lord, are good and forgiving, abounding in steadfast love to all who call upon you…”
-Ps. 90:14- “Satisfy us in the morning with your steadfast love, that we may rejoice and be glad all our days.”
-Ps. 94- “When I thought, “My foot slips,” your steadfast love, O Lord, held me up.”
-Ps. 103- “Bless the Lord, O my soul…and forget not all his benefits… who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy, who satisfies you with good so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s…The steadfast love of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear him.”
-Ps. 107:8-9, 40- “Let them thank the Lord for his steadfast love, for his wondrous works to the children of man! For he satisfies the longing soul, and the hungry soul he fills with good things…Whoever is wise, let him attend to these things; let them consider the steadfast love of the Lord.”
-Ps. 119:76- “Let your steadfast love comfort me, according to your promise to your servant.”
-Ps. 136- “Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good, for his steadfast love endures forever…” (repeats, “for his steadfast love endures forever” 26X).