The Breakwater at Plymouth

In 1812, engineer John Rennie began constructing a massive breakwater across Plymouth Sound in southwest England. For centuries, ships anchoring in that harbor had been at the mercy of violent storms sweeping in from the English Channel. Vessels dragged their anchors, smashed against rocks, and sank within sight of shore. The harbor offered proximity to land but no real protection.

Rennie's breakwater took nearly three decades to complete — over four million tons of limestone piled deliberately across the mouth of the sound. When fierce gales now drive waves twenty feet high against its outer face, the water on the harbor side barely ripples. Ships rest quietly at anchor while the storm spends its fury against the stone.

The prophet Nahum wrote during one of Israel's darkest chapters. Assyria's brutality was legendary, and God's people had every reason to tremble. Yet right in the middle of pronouncing judgment on Nineveh, Nahum pauses to declare a stunning truth: "The Lord is good, a refuge in times of trouble. He cares for those who trust in Him."

Notice the breakwater does not eliminate the storm. The gales still howl. The waves still crash. But those sheltered behind it experience something the open sea never offers — peace in the middle of violence.

God does not always remove the trouble. But He positions Himself between His people and destruction. Those who trust Him discover what every captain in Plymouth harbor learned: the refuge holds.