Do you ever feel like you’re standing on a pile of rocks, but the rocks are totally unstable? Like they are uneven and small, and the pile could fall over at any moment?
I have that feeling sometimes. Most of the time this feeling of instability comes when I think about the future. I get so anxious when I think about what’s to come, because it’s unknown territory. Maybe you have no problem with facing the unpredictable future, but you get anxious when you think about other things. Maybe your anxiety gets the best of you when the stress of life’s everyday tasks starts to add up, and you feel so overwhelmed by the pressure to get everything checked off your to-do list. Or maybe you feel this way when you think about something that’s happened in the past, and it’s too late to go back and change how you handled it. What situations lead you to feel the most anxious?
When this anxiety and instability creep up, sometimes it can be too much too handle and you panic. That rock pile you were standing on comes crumbing down. You can no longer balance your crazy life, the daily stress, the questionable future, the guilt-ridden past. And you fall. Hard.
So often, we rely on Earthly things to hold us up after our fight with fear and anxiety. These things might include distractions like our phones or a busy schedule, drugs or alcohol, or love from significant others, – relying on those things look a lot like standing on the imbalanced rock pile expecting not to fall. Maybe, for a period of time, those things will keep us up. But eventually, when enough things come our way, they won’t have the power to keep us from falling again and down we’ll go.
But imagine if you didn’t have to stand on a pile of shaky stones made of Earthy things that can’t support us. What if you could replace that pile with one strong, steady boulder? A boulder that you can not only stand on, but one big enough to run and do cartwheels on? A foundation that would hold you up rather than make you fall when your anxiety and fear come by for a visit?
Friends, that boulder is out there, and it’s waiting for you to leave that pile of stones in the dust and join it in the most beautiful mountain range. Jesus is that boulder. He is the steady foundation we can place our weary, tired, and anxious feet on. We can rely on Him and make Him the groundwork on which we stand. Isaiah 41:10 tells us, “So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”
When we make Jesus the foundation of our life, it’s impossible to fall when things come our way. I’m not saying that nothing bad will ever happen to you, because it will. And I’m not saying that when bad things do happen, they won’t be painful, because they will. But I am saying that when difficult things come your way and when you feel the anxiety and pain, Jesus will hold you up. Just like a sturdy boulder can bare your weight without crumbling, Jesus can do the same. Are you willing and ready to put all of your trust in Him so that He can be a strong foundation for you when things get, pun intended, rocky?
If you are, find your way to Matthew chapter 14:22-32. It’s one of my all time favorite passages because it depicts an incredible contrast between what it looks like to trust Jesus as your foundation and what it looks like to lose sight of Him and fall into your anxieties and fears.
Just one more thing before you leave. If you just downloaded that devo, know that SO proud of you for taking steps to make Jesus your foundation. God is about to speak some life into you and I couldn’t be more excited! Now let’s pray it out, shall we?!
Prayer
Lord,
Thank you for being a foundation for which I can place my feet. Thank you for having the strength to hold me stable and balanced when anxiety creeps in and challenges come my way. This life is difficult and often times I feel unsteady and scared. I pray that I will not rely on Earthly things to hold me up, but rather use you, Lord, as my strong foundation now and forever. I will put my trust in you; I believe that you will hold me up with your strength.
In your beautiful name I pray,
Amen
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