Friday, April 3

I love thee, O Lord, my strength.
The Lord is my rock,
and my fortress,
and my deliverer,
my God, my rock,
in whom I take refuge,
my shield,
and the horn of my salvation,
my stronghold.
I call upon the Lord,
who is worthy to be praised
and I am saved from my enemies.
—Psalm 18: 1-3

I’m scared to death of heights. Not just a little bit, but truly scared to death. Put me in a hotel on 15th floor with an open balcony down into the lobby, and I will surely go to my room and draw the drapes.   

Yet several years ago, I discovered an amazing fact. Although I’m scared of heights, I’m only afraid of man-made heights. Take me outside, and all is well. I can stand on a cliff at the edge of the Irish coast and look down 800 feet. I may get a little weak in the knees, but will experience nothing like I would at 40-50 feet up on a ropes course.

There’s something about knowing a structure is man-made that makes heights akin to the worst of Hitchcock movies for me. Outside, I understand crag and stronghold.

In the same way, when I stand upon God in my daily life, I find assurance. Unlike walking out there on my own man-made faith, where I get weak-kneed, standing on the firm earth of my creator who loves me more than I can imagine brings a sense of security and hope.

When I rely upon my own ability, trusting myself to build the best, I falter. But when I stand upon the faithfulness of God, things are more like firm ground. The cliffs are still there. The heights are near. But God is with me.     

God beyond your understanding can be the mountain upon which you stand. You do not have to know all the answers, you do not have to know exactly what you are doing, and you do not have to build an exact place upon which to execute righteousness. Instead, trust God, trust the ground underneath, and allow God’s gracious love to take away the fear of your man-made world.

Loving God, you are the rock upon which we stand, the crag and stronghold that delivers us from all our enemies. Help us to see you, and removing the things that we place between your love and our souls, help us to return to you, to know you and to love you through your Son Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.