Faith-Lift Friday

Sheryl at Taking the Challenge is hosting Faith Lift Fridays. This is a devotional that I wrote when we were in Romania. I learned to love my life there but we had days that were dark and uncertain and often I felt as if I were at the end of the earth.

Hear my cry, O God; attend unto my prayer. From the end of the earth will I cry unto thee, when my heart is overwhelmed: lead me to the rock that is higher than I. For thou hast been a shelter for me, and a strong tower from the enemy.

Psalm 61:1-3

We have all been to the “end of the earth”, that place where life just got too hard, burdens became too difficult, or the cross was too heavy to carry any further. Sometimes the storm rages so hard or so long that we wonder what will be left of our heart when it’s over. Maybe the storm we are facing is a sick or injured child, financial difficulties or a stressful relationship. Whatever the case, we are overwhelmed and find ourselves on the edge and facing a decision. What do we do now? Do we jump off or hide in some hole of self-pity and depression? Do we blame others or cry out against God? David did cry but it was a plea for God to hear him and help him in his desperate situation. David knew that there was a place to hide when life’s circumstances became unbearable. It wasn’t in self-pity or bitterness but in the Rock. God is the Rock that shelters us in the time of storm, the strong tower that protects us from our enemies, even the unseen enemies of discouragement, depression and bitterness. The winds are going to blow. The hard times are going to come. But God is always there for us. When we find ourselves at the end of the earth we must realize that this is not the end but the place to reach out to the Rock and let Him hold us. It is the place to grow, learn, become stronger and cling to our precious Lord more than ever before. Then we can say, “My flesh and my heart faileth: but God is the strength of my heart, and my portion for ever.” Psalm 73:26

© Karen Woodward 2002

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