Ahhh, the River

I've been learning Psalm 46 this year.
Presently, I am memorizing and meditating on verse 4, and I feel like we've turned a corner.
That is, for the first three verses there has always been mention of turmoil of some sort.

1God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. 2Therefore, we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, 3though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging.

I mean, it isn't that the mention of turmoil has been necessarily bad. Because of the Truth that God is present in it. He is our refuge and strength, so we need not fear. That's all been a good thing!
It's just that I've been watching and praying for a friend whose life seems to be filled with one quaking mountain after another lately. It's heart-breaking. (And I'm not even the one going through it!)
So, while it is encouraging to know God is present in the midst of the pain, while our hearts may be strengthened with the knowledge that we need not fear - the trouble gets tiring. And I find myself asking at times, God, when will this end???
I think that's why I felt peace when I got to verse 4.

There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy place where the Most High dwells.

With all the previous talk of mountains falling into the heart of the sea, and the roaring, foaming, surging waters, something about the mention of this river and its streams makes me want to run to it and splash around. To savor the peace that seems to be associated with it. And my heart is glad.
With this image, I am reminded that there will be an end to the troubles we face. There will come a day when we have no more pain, when we will cry no more tears of sadness, and our sorrows will all be gone. We will dwell in that holy place with the Most High. Never again to long for His presence because HE will be so present! Oh, what a wonderful thought.

Part of me is tempted to look ahead at the rest of this psalm, to see what's next and discover how it ends. But I will fight that urge. And, instead, I am going to enjoy the rest of the month basking in this peaceful thought of splashing in the River.
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It isn't too late to join me in this Psalm. I am starting a new verse on the first and fifteenth of each month - memorizing it, and thinking about it throughout each day. It would be a joy to share the experience with you!