Standing Firm on the Rock in Times of Trouble
by Liz Griffin
God the Rock seems to be a concept running through the Bible from the first time it is mentioned in Exodus Chapter 33, where Moses asked to be shown God’s glory. The Lord agreed but said Moses would not be able to see His face and live. ‘Then the Lord said, “There is a place near me where you may stand on a rock. When my glory passes by, I will put you in a cleft in the rock and cover you with my hand until I have passed by. Then I will remove my hand and you will see my back; but my face must not be seen’” (Exodus 33:21-23).
The rock is a place of protection and shelter. It is solid and unchangeable. It is a place of safety. Songs and hymns have been written about hiding in God the Rock, hiding in His presence. The apostle Paul wrote of the time of the Israelites being in the wilderness with Moses and said that they ‘all ate the same spiritual food, and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank from the spiritual Rock that followed them, and the Rock was Christ’ (1 Corinthians 10:3-4).
Many of the psalms of David describe the Lord as his rock, his fortress, his Saviour, and his deliverer. ‘I love you, Lord; you are my strength. The Lord is my rock, my fortress, and my savior; my God is my rock, in whom I find protection. He is my shield, the power that saves me, and my place of safety’ (Psalm 18:1-2, NLT).
David confidently declares he will never be shaken during times of trouble. ‘Truly my soul finds rest in God; my salvation comes from him. Truly he is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I shall never be shaken’ (Psalm 62:1-2). The question we have to ask ourselves is whether this is true for us. There are numerous reasons today why even Christians might feel completely shaken, shocked and traumatised.
I heard a sermon in my church where the question was asked, ‘How do we live with God as our rock in a scary and uncertain world?’ The preacher then said it was mainly by memorising God’s words and choosing to believe them, retelling God’s past faithfulness, and journeying and praying with others. We were asked to think if there was a Bible verse that helps us to stand firm on God the Rock in times of trouble, and whether we could share a time when we were struggling, and God helped us.
I recalled how, two years ago, I had to go to the hospital for a chest x-ray when the UK was in a national Lockdown because of Covid. I was quite afraid and asked the doctor if it was safe to go into the hospital, but he told me it would be. I opened the Bible at my regular reading plan for that day and read these words, ‘But I will sing of your strength, in the morning I will sing of your love; for you are my fortress, my refuge in times of trouble. You are my strength, I sing praise to you; you, God, are my fortress, my God on whom I can rely’ (Psalm 59:16-17).
Liz Griffin lived for 20 years as an expatriate in South Africa, Bahrain and Japan, as her husband Paul worked for an international oil company. Paul and Liz became involved with Ellel Ministries in 1991 as part of the ministry team and joined the full-time team at Ellel Grange in 1995. Paul and Liz teach and minister to those seeking healing in their lives and together have written two books, 'Anger - How Do You Handle It' and 'Hope and Healing For The Abused'.
Please feel free to use this devotional to send on to your friends or share with your church fellowship. Provided full acknowledgement is made to Seeds of the Kingdom as the source, you are also welcome to use it in a non-commercial way and reproduce it in magazines or other Christian websites. The copyright for any commercial use of the material remains with Ellel Ministries International.
