1996
2014
The end of the school year always makes me nostalgic and a bit wistful. This year was especially poignant as we had three nephews and two nieces graduate from high school or college. As I sat in the audience during one niece’s graduation ceremony, scenes flashed through my mind of the eighteen previous years, starting with the day she was born. It’s hard to believe she’s grown and about to leave for college in a few months. I know I’m getting older every day, but those milestone moments drive it home with extra impact.
Change is a part of life, but sometimes I don’t like it very much. Kids grow up, friendships change, and communities evolve. All of this is normal, but sometimes it creates an ache in me that spirals to a place of deep longing. If I’m not careful, I can wallow in my sadness and lose sight of the truth.
Life is constantly changing and there is nothing I can do to stop it. However, there is a greater Truth that gives me hope in spite of this:
“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.” (Hebrews 13:8).
No matter what changes this life may bring, God is always the same. He is our Solid Rock and the firm foundation on which we stand. Our circumstances may change, our relationships may ebb and flow, our health may fail us, but God will never leave us or forsake us.
“My soul finds rest in God alone; my salvation comes from him. He alone is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will never be shaken.” (Psalm 62:1-2)
There is an old hymn that has been a favorite of mine for many years called “The Solid Rock” by Edward Mote.
My hope is built on nothing less
Than Jesus’ blood and righteousness;
I dare not trust the sweetest frame,
But wholly lean on Jesus’ name.
When darkness veils His lovely face,
I rest on His unchanging grace;
In every high and stormy gale,
My anchor holds within the veil.
His oath, His covenant, His blood
Support me in the whelming flood;
When all around my soul gives way,
He then is all my hope and stay.
When He shall come with trumpet sound,
Oh, may I then in Him be found;
Dressed in His righteousness alone,
Faultless to stand before the throne.
Refrain:
On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand;
All other ground is sinking sand,
All other ground is sinking sand.
It’s based on Jesus’s teaching in Matthew 7:24-26.
“Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”
If we want Jesus to be our firm foundation, then we need to read His word and put it into practice. As we pursue Him, He’ll continue to shape our characters and refine our perspectives. Although I don’t like change, this is transformation I want. This is change I need.
Jesus is the Solid Rock to which we cling in this world of shifting sand. Having a firm foundation beneath our feet gives us hope and courage to press on. We can be reassured and filled with confidence knowing God never changes. How could we ever keep this amazing hope to ourselves when there is a world that desperately needs to hear Truth?
Click on the link to hear a newer interpretation of “The Solid Rock.” Hillsong sings this recent version called “Cornerstone.” (The title comes from Isaiah 28:16 and 2 Peter 2:6 depicts Jesus as our Cornerstone– the most important stone in a structure which determines the design and orientation of the entire building. Noted in the Zondervan Study Bible).