"Safe-house for the battered"

I was listening to some worship music this morning and felt led to read some Psalms while the music played. I returned to Psalm 9, one I read a little over a week ago. These few verses seemed to strike me somewhere deep in my soul (again):

GOD's a safe-house for the battered,
a sanctuary during bad times.
The moment you arrive, you relax;
you're never sorry you knocked. (vs 9-10 MSG)

Do you ever feel battered or bruised from life? Ever feel like you need somewhere to run...to get away from everything? I do. And when I run into God's presence, swiftly shutting and barring the door behind me, it's true...as Eugene Peterson writes...I relax. I soak Him in and begin to heal. And I'm never, ever sorry I "knocked".