It was the moment every performer dreads. My daughter sat at the grand piano in front of a hushed crowd, staring at her hands on the keys. There was no music in front of her, and her brain refused to bail out her stymied fingers. She was stuck, halfway through her piece. After a long pause and a couple of false starts, she finished the piece and took her bow. But in her mind, it was a disaster. A catastrophe. The Most Embarrassing Moment Ever in her short 7 years of life.

Can you guess what she did next? She ran to me. She climbed into my lap, buried her face in my chest, and cried. She didn’t run to her brothers, who were seated in the front row with the other performers. She didn’t run to the strangers in the audience seated right behind them. She didn’t even run to her piano teacher, whom she adores.

She ran to the one who knows her best.

Where do you run for comfort or refuge when life hurts? If I’m honest, I often run to a friend, to Facebook, or to a bag of popcorn. I forget the One who knows me in a way no one else does. My Heavenly Father knows my troubles and invites me to find refuge in Him.

Nahum 1:7: The Lord is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble; he knows those who take refuge in him.

This verse gives us three reasons to run to the Lord with our troubles. 1) The Lord is good. It’s simple, but profound. He is unfailingly good. He will not disappoint us. 2) The Lord is a stronghold. He is a sure and steadfast anchor we can cling to in our struggles. 3) The Lord knows us. He knows our struggles. He knows our needs. He knows our past, present, and future. He knows.

No matter what we face this week, the Lord knows those who take refuge in Him.