When times are tough and troubles surround us let us remember we are not alone:

"Trust in the Lord forever - for in God the Lord, we have an everlasting Rock.” Isaiah 26:4

My Lord asks, "Is there any God beside Me, or is there any other Rock? I know of none.”

I don’t either. But sometimes I think and act as if there is another Rock -- another solid place to stand, another unshakable support. Yet, I know that He alone must reign in my life. He alone truly knows my heart, my future, my circumstances and all the solution for every struggle. Only He has the power to fulfill His plan. He truly is my one and only Rock!

Jesus gave us a comparison between a wise man and a foolish man. One built his house on a rock, the other on sand. Both faced fierce storms, but when “the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew and burst against the house”, one stood firm and the other fell. Both men heard and knew God’s word. The wise man followed God's way. But the foolish one just did “what was right in his own eyes” -- what felt good and seemed best from a finite human perspective.

I, too, have heard God’s Word and His call to follow. He compels me to come to Him, follow Him, work with Him and rest with Him. I will not be foolish any longer and build on the shifting sands of the world! Not when the Everlasting Rock has called me to stand with Him on the unchanging, everlasting Rock -- His very Life! Knowing well how weak I am, He has reached down to “lift me up on [that] rock..."

He indeed is “the Rock of my refuge.” I need only "abide in Him," acknowledging that-- “My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever!" (Psalm 73:26)

This everlasting Rock doesn't crumble under weights that would crush me. He holds me up and causes me stand immovable in Him. When He sees me weary and overloaded, He gently whispers,

“Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. " Matthew 11:28-29.

With joy, my heart responds to His love,

"I  love You, O Lord, my strength. The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer; My God, my strength, in whom I will trust!" Psalm 18:1-2