Caves

I read a devotional today that someone sent me. I don't know who wrote it. Because I don't know anything about the origin, I can't add a link to it. This particular devotional writing was about a psalm that David had written. The devotion made reference to David hiding in a cave.

Qumran - Dead Sea Scrolls

Then I was reading the daily Bible reading about Elijah...who was hiding in a cave. So I got to thinking about caves. There are all kinds of caves. I looked up the word CAVE in the Enhanced Strong's Lexicon which is part of the Essential Bible Study Library that I have. The Hebrew words that are sometimes translated cave are also sometimes translated as den, hole, and cavern. Caves were used for hiding places and burial sites and as a place to live. Joshua used it to hold five kings who were hiding there as prisoners. In 1 Samuel 24:3, Saul used it as a toilet. Caves were also used to store things. The Dead Sea Scrolls were found in caves several hundred centuries after they were written and stored (possibly hidden) there. There are many, many caves in this area of the world. That's why it was easy to hide and store things there.

Do we use caves the same way today? Do we have intellectual /metaphorical caves or dens where we hide our valuables or ourselves? Do we (try to) hide from God? Do we store our valuables out of God's sight? Maybe we hide private activities like Saul did. I'll bet that we even bury things in our caves, hoping they are never found. God knows what's there, like David did when Saul used the cave to relieve himself. Others will find your secrets eventually. Also, when someone is not being sociable we might say they are hiding or spending time in their caves.

We all have caves where we spend time, hide resources, pray for safety. God provides us with this protection. He also calls us out just like Elijah in 1 Kings 19.(verses 9-13) "What are you doing here, Elijah?", He asks, not once but twice. "What are you doing here...?" God lets us hide in our caves for a while, then He asks, "What are you doing here...?" Then He says to us as He said to Elijah, "Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the LORD, for the LORD is about to pass by." If we choose not to "go out", we may miss the the Lord pass by. What an opportunity to miss!! Notice the "gentle whisper" God uses, to comfort, to console, to call out and not to reprimand.

God, thank you for the hiding places you provide and thank you for calling us out. Open our eyes to those things we are trying to hide and help us to bring them into the open where You pass by. Forgive us where necessary. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

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