A FIRM
FOUNDATION
Written by Luz Leigh – 16 January 2008
For many
years my family and I attended a small
Southern Baptist Church about six miles from
my home. Then the Lord led us to other
churches. During the years we were at the
small church, we took turns giving a
devotional before we went to our respective
Sunday school classes. About once every two
months the lady, who was in charge of seeing
to it that a devotional would be given, would
remind me that the following Sunday would be
my responsibility.
Well,
speaking was never a problem for me, once I
found that I didn’t have to hide behind my
mother’s skirt tail. So, having been reminded,
I would make a notation somewhere around the
house or in my Bible “Devotion Sunday”. Then
on Sunday morning, a few minutes before time
to depart for church, I would pray, “Lord,
help me”. Opening my Bible, I would choose a
scripture verse, select an appropriate hymn to
be sung, and make a decision on whom I would
call to lead in the opening prayer. Hurriedly,
I would jot down some notes.
This
morning, when searching for something in one
of my many notebooks around here, I found
notes that were dated 02-24-02 and contained
the following:
Hymn 338,
verse 1
Prayer,
Cousin Clyde Colburn
1 Peter
1:23 Prov 29:17
Remember
these 2 statements
1. A
solid foundation
2. The
ability to bend
These are 2
primary factors that keep tall buildings safe
during earthquakes.
These are 2
necessary factors in a Christian’s life.
“Bending”
Last verse
of hymn 338
Today after
reading the two scripture references, I
searched around for a hymnal, one that we
would have been using at that time. “How Firm
a Foundation” was the chosen hymn.
Cousin Clyde
was a dear sweet man, in his nineties by that
time, who had the most beautiful bass singing
voice one could imagine. And pray…...that man
was no stranger to the throne of God. He
prayed from the heart.
“Bending”
was something I wrote for one of my sons when
he was having some difficult times in his
life. It has been shared with many folks prior
to its being posted on my webpage in a feeble
effort to bring hope and comfort to those who
might be struggling.
I know not
how I tied in those scripture verses, the song
and the story, but the Lord gave me the
message to speak. He guided me that morning as
I stood before the handful of Christian
brothers and sisters, many of whom were my
blood relatives. And you know how much harder
it is to speak to relatives than to
strangers. Our relatives know our weaknesses
as well as any strengths we might have.
Think on the
third verse of “How Firm a Foundation”.
The soul
that on Jesus hath leaned for repose,
I will not,
I will not desert to his foes;
That soul,
tho’ all hell should endeavor to shake,
I’ll never,
no, never, no, never forsake.
It is my
hope that anyone who reads this will have his
foundation planted on Jesus the Rock and will
lean on Him for repose, which means
rest. Sorry that I can’t remember all the
words I shared with the folks that morning
back in 2002, but maybe I have given you
enough encouragement that you will look up
those scriptures and maybe find the words to
the other verses of the song mentioned. Then
pray for His enlightening.
