What is your rock…your solid foundation?? That’s a great question to be asking especially after the last couple of windstorms we’ve experienced here in our region. Those storms have been more than “hang on to your hat” experiences…they’ve been “hang on for dear life” experiences. I’ve heard several individuals share their story of being caught out in the storm in a tractor, or a vehicle, or some other building or shelter, and they weren’t sure they were going to survive. Yes, there have been some pretty scary moments during the past several storms. So again, what is your rock…your solid foundation?
For me, the biggest surprise I discovered after one of the recent windstorms was that it moved my camper! Nancy and I enjoy camping and we have a 26-foot travel trailer that sits beside our home when we are not out camping in it. After the most recent storm, when I was walking around our house looking for any damage, I noticed the camper had moved – just a couple inches, but it had moved. The tongue jack was no longer on the wood blocks I usually have it sitting on. The scissor brakes that I had in place on both sets of tandem wheels on the trailer were no longer in place, and one set of wheel chocks were no longer in place under the wheels on one side. Added to all that the fact that the camper was sitting at a different angle on its pad, I knew the wind had moved it. Again, all I can say is WOW!!!
Fortunately, there was one of the wheel chocks that stayed in place. That block was the solid foundation that didn’t move and actually kept the camper from being pushed forward into the back of the vehicle that was sitting in front of it. That would have caused damage to the camper as well as that other vehicle.
What we all have to realize is that we all need a “solid foundation,” something that will keep us grounded or held fast in the storms of life. David, in the Old Testament of our Bible, knew of the importance of a solid foundation. During a period in his life, when King Saul was trying to capture and kill David, he ran and hid in various places in the wilderness. In fact, there was an actual rock fortress on the top of a tall butte that truly was his solid foundation. It was a place of safety and security. Time and time again, in the Psalms that David wrote, he refers to God as his solid foundation and his fortress…even in – especially in the moments in life in which it seemed that a storm was raging.
As I’ve been writing this article, I just hung up from talking to a college friend. He and his wife and Nancy and I were good friends in college. In fact, there was at least one double date. This friend called to let us know that his wife had died very unexpectedly. Talk about a sudden storm. But as I talked with him, he used such words as strength and foundation in reference to God and his faith as being what was getting him through this extremely difficult time.
One of the passages that has been a “go to” verse for me lately is that of Psalm 62. This is another Psalm of David. In this Psalm David writes, “For God alone my soul waits in silence; from Him comes my salvation. He alone is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall never be shaken.” Psalm 62:1-2
I’m grateful for that one wheel chock that kept my camper in place during the storm. I’m also grateful for Psalm 62 that reminds me that in the storms of life, God is my fortress. And because of that fact, I shall never be shaken. As followers of Jesus, may we all recognize and seek to make God our strong foundation. This doesn’t mean bad things won’t happen…it just means the storms may rage, but God will be our strength and hold us fast.
Serving Together,
Pastor Keith