6 Reasons Why it Matters that God is Our Rock
A friend of mine challenged a group of us to start off the year in the Psalms. For the month of January, we were challenged to memorize Psalms passages and take time to delight in the Lord. I was so blessed by this challenge! With the start of this semester, I decided to pick three Psalms that focused on the character of God, specifically His strength (I am taking a math class, which I was nervous about, so I felt like focusing on God’s strength would be helpful). One of the Psalms that God really spoke to me through was Psalm 61.
Hear my cry, O God; Give heed to my prayer. From the end of the earth I call to You when my heart is faint; Lead me to the rock that is higher than I. For You have been a refuge for me, A tower of strength against the enemy. Let me dwell in Your tent forever; Let me take refuge in the shelter of Your wings. Selah. For You have heard my vows, O God; You have given me the inheritance of those who fear Your name. You will prolong the king’s life; His years will be as many generations. He will abide before God forever; Appoint lovingkindness and truth that they may preserve him. So I will sing praise to Your name forever, That I may pay my vows day by day. Psalm 61:1-8
As I memorized this Psalm, my mind kept returning to verse 2, “…when my heart is faint; Lead me to the rock that is higher than I.” Through meditating on this passage, I have learned six reasons why it matters that God is our Rock.
1: If God were not our strength, He would not be a very good God.
I was struck by the contrast in verse two between the faint heart and the description of God as a rock. I think Christianity today can be so fixed on the fact that God is Love that we ignore the rest of God’s character. If God were only loving without also being strong, why would we run to Him during times of trouble? A sympathetic ear is always nice, but during times of trouble, we don’t just want sympathy; we want strength to lean on and protect us. Because God is our Rock and our tower of strength, we can run to Him and jump into His arms. He is both a loving and strong Father.
2: My heart is easily faint.
From the end of the earth I call to You when my heart is faint; Lead me to the rock that is higher than I.
This verse has reminded me of how often my heart is faint. I am not that strong. Recently, I found out I unexpectedly had six papers due in two days, and I panicked. I was momentarily paralyzed, thinking, “how in the world can I get all these done?” Thankfully, I was able to get them all done and submitted in time. The thing is, six papers due in two days is not the end of the world, and yet my heart grew faint. My heart grows faint when I am leaning on my own strength. That is why I need to be led to the Rock. I need to find refuge in God’s strength, from the small trials to the big trials. Only when I am resting in God’s strength can I have confidence to face my battles.
3: I can cry to God whenever and about whatever, and He hears.
Hear my cry, O God; Give heed to my prayer. Psalm 61:1
For You have heard my vows, O God; You have given me the inheritance of those who fear Your name. Psalm 61:5
God hears when we cry out to Him. He hears when we cry out for help. He hears when we praise Him. He hears when we thank Him. He hears when we make promises to Him. The beautiful thing about God is that He is always available to listen, and He is always strong enough to handle our troubles.
casting all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you. 1 Peter 5:7
4: God’s strength and protection are part of His love.
For You have been a refuge for me, A tower of strength against the enemy. Let me dwell in Your tent forever; Let me take refuge in the shelter of Your wings. Selah. Psalm 61:3-4
God wants us to take refuge in Him, to run to Him with our worries and fears, and to seek strength from Him. He is a loving Father who desires His best for His children. This does not mean that hard times never come, but that when they come, we have a stronghold in God that cannot be destroyed by the storm. God uses the storms in our lives to make us more like Him and to reveal to us His love and strength.
5: God blesses us.
God has an inheritance for those who fear Him (Psalm 61:5). He preserves us with His lovingkindness and truth (Psalm 61:7). The blessings of our inheritance and preservation through His lovingkindness and truth are fulfilled in Jesus Christ. God blesses us not because He has to, but because He chooses to.
6: We are to praise God for being our Rock.
So I will sing praise to Your name forever, That I may pay my vows day by day. Psalm 61:8
Knowing how awesome God’s strength is should cause us to praise Him! What a blessing to know that we are secure in our Rock, our tower of strength. Because God is our strength, we can praise Him, we can have confidence and rest in our hearts, and we can live out the Christian life He has called us to.
So, I have a challenge for you. Take some time to meditate on God’s strength, and then praise Him for being your Rock! Let us never forget that God is our Rock, and let’s run to His arms and rest in His loving strength.
With love,
Kelsey
