Is the Ground Shifting? Look to the Rock of My Salvation

You know that feeling when things are shifting and changing, and you can’t quite get a handle on it? One solution to feeling out of control is to use an approach called grounding. I’d like to add an important step to that popular approach.

We’re in the middle of a series on rocks. For some reason that makes me laugh. Rocks are mentioned a lot in the Bible! Hundreds of times, actually. I’ve been writing this series out of order, because that’s how life has felt to me lately: out of order. Not broken, but mixed up, unsettled, not quite right.

You know that feeling when things are shifting and changing, and you can’t quite get a handle on it? My heart goes out to those of you who move every few years or who face ever-changing health or income challenges.

They say that when you have a panic attack, one strategy is to look around and find

• 5 things you can see,
• 4 things you can touch,
• 3 things you can hear,
• 2 things you can smell, and
• 1 thing you can taste.

This is called grounding. The point is to connect with something solid in order to help you feel less out of control.

I’d like to add a 6th point: Fix your eyes on the Rock of your salvation.

To give this series credibility, I gave it a name: “Lead Me to the Rock.” I couldn’t, after all, just call it “Rocks.” Who would read that? Maybe a bunch of geologists and paleontologists.

But the Rock of the Bible is so much more than a clump of mineral to be examined. He is our fortress, our shield, our deliverer, and, in the person of Jesus Christ, our salvation.

Ever tried to budge a boulder? Big rocks are heavy, sturdy, immovable. They are not going anywhere. That’s God for you. His promises are everlasting.

This side of heaven, our days and even moments will shift and change. But God’s character and His gift of salvation for all who put their trust in Him is sure. It is sturdy and immovable. In Psalm 62:2 (ESV), David says,

He alone is my rock and my salvation,
my fortress; I shall not be greatly shaken.

Catch that last phrase: “I shall not be greatly shaken.” Why will David not be shaken? Because his trust is in the one sure thing: the promise of salvation in Jesus.

I stood at the sink, washing the dishes that had piled up, and I talked with God–really, truly talked with Him. Thoughts came to my mind in the quietness, and the knot that had been in my stomach for two weeks disappeared. Calmed in His presence, my trust renewed, I felt settled, at peace.

So, yes, when the world is spinning, look around for what seems solid: things you can see, touch, hear, smell, and taste. Add to that a Bible verse, a song, or a heart-to-heart talk with the Lord to remind you of the one sure thing: the Rock of your salvation.

How will you ground yourself in the Rock of your salvation this week?

Digging into God’s Word: Rock of My Salvation

David’s life was replete with shifting and changing circumstances. Mighty warrior and king that he was, he knew the source of his strength and his salvation. You might sing or pray these scriptures out loud.

2 Samuel 22:47 (ESV)

The Lord lives, and blessed be my rock,
and exalted be my God, the rock of my salvation.

Psalm 62:1-8 (ESV)

My Soul Waits for God Alone

To the choirmaster: according to Jeduthun. A Psalm of David.

1 For God alone my soul waits in silence;
from him comes my salvation.
2 He alone is my rock and my salvation,
my fortress; I shall not be greatly shaken.
3 How long will all of you attack a man
to batter him,
like a leaning wall, a tottering fence?
4 They only plan to thrust him down from his high position.
They take pleasure in falsehood.
They bless with their mouths,
but inwardly they curse. Selah
5 For God alone, O my soul, wait in silence,
for my hope is from him.
6 He only is my rock and my salvation,
my fortress; I shall not be shaken.
7 On God rests my salvation and my glory;
my mighty rock, my refuge is God.
8 Trust in him at all times, O people;
pour out your heart before him;
God is a refuge for us. Selah

Digging Deeper: Rock of My Salvation

Cherish this time with the Lord. Reflect on or journal about the following questions, listening for what God has to say to you.

1. What area of your life seems to be shifting or changing? Take time to consider what about the change is particularly unsettling to you.

2. Ask God to bring to mind ways He has helped you through change in your past. Did He bring friends to help you? Did He change your circumstances? Did God help change your inner being so that you could withstand the shifting sand?

3. What song or Bible verse can you bring to mind to remind yourself that God is the rock of your salvation? We often focus on our current circumstances and forget the big picture. There is no bigger picture than that of eternity. It is not a crutch to remind yourself of this. It is resting on one of God’s biggest promises.

4. What a promise to sing about! God is our rock and our salvation. Choose one or all of the songs to listen to, or come back to these songs throughout the week.

Trust In You (Lauren Daigle. This one has me undone. I hope it ministers to you as well.)

I Will Call Upon the Lord (Tasha Page-Lockhart. With David may we sing, “The Lord lives, and blessed be my rock, and exalted be my God, the rock of my salvation.”)

I Feel the Earth Move (Carole King. This is just for fun. It’s not a worship song at all.)

Sing to Jesus (Fernando Ortega. In case you need to worship after that last song!)

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Find Past Series

You can find Past Devotions from other series on the website under the Devotions menu or at www.diggingdeeperwithgod.com/past-devotions/.

Two of the most popular series have been Hope Springs Eternal and All In: A Study of Elisha.

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Free Printable on Psalm 103

A few weeks ago, we finished a series on Leaving a Legacy, which focused on living out the characteristics that God models for us in Psalm 103. For a printable on What Psalm 103 Tells Us About God, click this link:

What Psalm 103 Tells Us About God

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