The One my soul longs for
When need is greatest, who do we turn to? Life has a way of revealing where our trust lies simply by what we cling to the most during times of adversity, conflict, and uncertainty. One thing is true: we all cling to something and someone.
Fear has a way of hijacking our choices if we aren’t careful. Uncertainty in job security, unstable economy, and unsettled relationships just to name a few are times when we will find out where our trust is most invested. The temptation is to place our trust in the tangible, something that we can physically latch a hold of, but the truth is Jesus is the ONLY source of consistent security and stability.
Recently, the nations of the world observed with great mystery as a private submarine descended with the intentions of observing what was once believed to be a ship that not even the God of Heaven and Earth could sink – the Titanic. I’m almost disgusted bringing it up again after the media over played the nightmarish tail that transpired. Ocean Gate was a submarine owned by a multi billionaire who was obviously secure financially but when disaster struck, his money could do nothing whatsoever for him. Thousands upon thousands of miles below the ocean surface, the submarine experienced severe complication that led to the submarine and its passengers being instantly and simultaneously crushed due to imposion. The pressure was too great for the submarine to sustain and what was meant to be a device of protection in a hazardous environment, much like the Titanic, became a graveyard in the midst of one of modern histories largest underwater graveyards and disasters.
What we place our hope in during times of uncertainty matters. Sometimes the very things we look to that make great boasts of being dependable, faithful, and even immovable end up being the polar opposite. One thing is sure, like the scripture says:
“Some trust in chariots and some in horses, BUT WE will remember and trust in the Name of The Lord our God.” Psalm 20:7 AMP
There is absolutely nothing in this life that cannot be moved apart from Jesus Christ. What or who you turn to in times of adversity usually will reveal what or who you serve as God. Whether that’s money and the economy, friends and family, or even our own physical health, nothing in this life is guaranteed secure apart from Jesus Christ the Prince of Peace.
Jesus was walking with the disciples and began to tell them a story about two different foundations. One made of stone and the other made of sand. “Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine AND DOES THEM, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock: 25 and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and IT DID NOT FALL, for it was founded on the rock.” Matthew 7:24-25 NKJV
You see, when we both receive Jesus into our hearts allowing Him to be our Lord and Savior with free reign in our lives, the result is stability and immovability. Notice that a life built upon and dependent upon the Lord doesn’t guarantee a life without storms, it guarantees a life that won’t be moved by them. Conversely, Jesus goes on to describe the man whose life was built after the foolish ways of the world:
26 “But everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, AND DOES NOT DO THEM, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand: 27 and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and IT FELL. And GREAT WAS ITS FALL.” Matthew 7:26-27 NKJV
Anything we build our confidence upon outside of the Lord WILL FALL. Jesus teachings are meant to be the bedrock of our lives drawing our dependence upon Him in all things, but when we place our dependence and trust in the many different avenues that this world claims to be infallible, we build our lives upon shifting sands that are guaranteed at some point to collapse beneath the weight of our lives.
Jesus died not only to save our souls from Hell, He died to restore us to deeply intertwined intimacy and relationship with Him on a day in day out basis. Nothing that we do should be done apart from Him and nothing that we have should come between us and Him. Our souls were meant to forever long and desire for Him.
Anything that promises safety and security from the storms of life apart from Christ, is a royal set up for not only heart ache but repetitive let down. There is nothing wrong with assets and financial stability, nor is there anything wrong with solid relationships and healthy organizations, but what we must never forget as we journey on in this life is that our stability and fortitude comes from the Lord and the Lord only.
“The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer;
My God, my strength, in whom I will trust;
My shield and the horn{the authority} of my salvation, my stronghold.” Psalm 18:2 NKJV
