By Nick Medler
When I was asked about sharing my favorite Psalm, my mind quickly went to this verse. It’s a verse that has provided me comfort and encouragement on several occasions through the years. “My health may fail, and my spirit may grow weak, but God remains the strength of my heart; He is mine forever.” Psalms 73:26 NLT
As I recalled this verse, it led my thoughts to several other verses that have guided me in similar ways and reminded me of a conversation I had with some folks from church. In the conversation I shared some of these verses and how I had envisioned them as anchors. I equated them to the anchors used in rock climbing and that as we come across these verses and we embed them into our spirit to lean on for comfort or peace or a place to feel secure, we are much like the rock climber who, as he finds a solid place in the rock, embeds an anchor to give himself a feeling of comfort and peace of mind knowing that he has established a point of security.
This vision seemed simple as I first explained it but as I looked further into how rock-climbing anchor systems work, I had to smile at the similarities of how we anchor ourselves with the Word! A quick internet search of “rock climbing anchoring techniques,” without even knowing it, gave us a tutorial on using the Word to connect with the Father. The overview says: “Rock climbing anchors connect the climbing system to the rock using reliable protection points and a central master point.” How cool is that! If we will take the Word and use it as our reliable protection, knowing that it is anchored in the Master, our Rock and our Salvation, we can live a life secure in the fact that God will remain our strength.
You may be thinking that’s great and all… but life is hard and unfair, and unforgiving and sometimes just plain mean! Well, you’re right! That was the exact sentiments of the author of Psalm 73. In the verses leading up to 26 he was struggling! But in the end, he settled back on his anchor and realized that even through his disgust and bitterness that God the Father, his Rock, was still holding him and that he still belongs to Him! Praise God!
Prayer: Father God keep us mindful that you are our Rock and our Salvation, and even when we fall or just lose focus, that you have never let us go or cut us loose from your love and grace. Keep us eager to find the next stronghold to connect us even more to you. Amen.