January 17, 2026
”The salvation of the righteous comes from the Lord; he is their stronghold in times of trouble.”- Psalm 37:39 (NIV)
Finding Your Stronghold
The word “salvation”, in this verse, isn’t about going to heaven. It means help, safety, and rescue in our daily lives. It’s a powerful reminder that, ultimately, God is the One who delivers us from bad situations and that salvation does not begin within us. It is from the Lord.
Psalm 37:39 (NIV) describes God as a “Stronghold” (Strength or Fortress in some versions). It emphasizes that God is a “safe place”. A safe place that we can run to, spiritually or mentally, when we feel we are feeling overwhelmed. At those times when we are out of energy, God provides us with the strength to continue. He ensures we have the internal fortitude to keep going.
“In times of trouble”acknowledges that even “righteous” people (those who try to follow God) will face hard times. Even though we will have trouble, we won’t be alone when it happens. God will be right there with us. The NLT (New Living Translation) says He is our “fortress in times of trouble”. This isn’t about avoiding a battle. It’s about having an impenetrable shelter in the middle of a fight. The storm may rage outside, but our position inside the fortress is safe and secure. Our protection doesn’t come from anything that we do, but from God’s power and presence. The challenge for us is letting go of the urge to rescue ourselves. We must abandon the need to use our own feeble strength or fret with worry. These only cause harm. We are called to stop trying to force our own solutions. Instead we need to “take refuge in him” (Nahum 1:7)(ESV). We should not rush to fix every problem with our limited power. We need to start focusing on trusting God’s timing for our own rescue.
As we begin this new year, the world often feels like it’s in a constant “time of trouble”. It could be global concerns or the quiet but heavy burdens of their own personal life-financial stress, health concerns, or broken relationships. With all this, it’s easy to feel our strength isn’t enough to even get us through the day. The truth is, we were never meant to carry these burdens on our own. Scripture tells us that our salvation and “daily bread” (all we need to make it through the day) come directly ‘from the Lord.’ He isn’t just watching our struggles from a distance. He is actively offering His own strength to sustain us through our trials.
The promise in Psalm 37:39 isn’t escape from the trials, it’s guaranteed refuge within them. When life’s pressures grow heavy and our own strength isn’t enough, we are invited to stop striving and run to the stronghold that is God. The peace we find isn’t the result of anything we did, it’s a gift of His grace.
Challenge for Today: As we go through this week, we need to keep the peace of knowing that our salvation is in His hands. I invite you to grab a sticky note, index card, or a piece of paper and write: “He is my stronghold“. Let it remind you that no matter what trials come your way, you have an unshakable stronghold that will never crumble.
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