Grains of Sand

blendspace.com (Googel Images) There it was—a tiny phrase loaded with meaning. “ …though your footprints were not seen ” (Psalm 77:19) Most of us are familiar with the poem Footprints where God is described first of all as walking alongside of us on our journey through life. At that point there are two sets of footprints. Then, as life grows difficult, only one set of prints is seen and the author wonders where God was when things were going so badly. The answer comes back that those footprints were His as He carried His child through the storms of life. The poem, and the truth expressed in it, has blessed millions. Asaph didn’t see any footprints. He begins this psalm crying out for help (77:1-9). He is hurting, in distress, can’t sleep. He is troubled. He wonders if God has rejected His people, if He no longer loves them, if He is angry with them. As he struggles, He remembers all that God had done for His people in the past (77:10-15). He remembers how: “ The waters s...

Labadee Village, Haiti “ When darkness veils His lovely face, I rest on His unchanging grace; In every high and stormy gale, My anchor holds within the veil. On Christ the solid Rock I stand; All other ground is sinking sand, All other ground is sinking sand .” Theses words, taken from the hymn The Solid Rock   came to mind this morning as I was reading Psalm 54. The psalm was written during a period of David’s life when he was being pursued by King Saul. His life was in danger. There were people willing to betray him. It seemed that there was no safe harbour, no peace, no rest. David begins with a plea for help: “ Save me, O God, by your name; vindicate me by your might ” (54:1), Our first port of call on a recent Caribbean vacation was Grand Cayman. I confess that I was surprised and a bit disappointed at my first look at the island as we made landfall. It is basically similar to a sand spit—not a hill in sight anywhere. As we toured the island our guide mentioned that much o...

Google Images The water was rough, the waves high, and the rowing was difficult. When the situation didn’t seem like it could get any worse, “ they saw Jesus approaching ” (John 6:19). Jesus had sent His disciples away, commissioned to cross the lake while He retreated to talk to His Father. The wind came up. It was dark. The Master wasn’t with them and the circumstances threatened to overwhelm them. Then...” they saw Jesus approaching .” As soon as the Lord stepped into the boat, they were “ immediately ” on shore (6:21). They were safe. Another interesting little detail appears in these few verses. When the disciples first saw Jesus they were frightened. After all, they hadn’t expected to see Him walking on water! But when they recognized Him, “ they were willing to take him into the boat ” (6:21). In the middle of the storm, they needed to see Jesus, they needed to be willing to put aside their fear and take Him into the boat. Only they could they feel the solidness of land unde...