Stand on The Rock or in Quicksand

When you are feeling down, where do you go for inspiration?
What renews your zest for living, and lifts you up and gets you going?
Do you have a friend who makes you laugh, brings out the best in you?
Does nature inspire you? Do you have a favorite hobby or activity?
Does a sweaty endorphin release at the gym pump you up?

All these things are good...friends, physical activities, sunshine, personal accomplishment.. how wonderful it is to be joyful and engaged in life!

Some days though are just plain hard. Some seasons are loaded with glitch, after unexpected glitch, and you start to feel like SchlepRock from The Flintstones. Do you remember him? Whatever he walked past crumbled around him as he mumbled garbled curses under his breath? Or, maybe PigPen from the Charlie Brown cartoon with that cloud of odor, causing folks to keep their distance.

On days when my I feel that I'm crumbling and I know that my attitude stinks, it is easy to wallow in self-pity. At first, it feels good to wallow, like stepping into a spa bath, the warm water swirls, the bubbles tickle your nose and the aroma is sweet; but, then you suddenly realize this is quicksand you are in, and you are about to get yanked under!

This is how sin works in our life.
If it wasn't fun at first you wouldn't dabble, and before you realize it you've gone from enticement, to engagement, to imprisonment and you never saw it coming.

Guard your heart, the Bible warns. Keep looking UP to Jesus, The Author & Finisher of Faith. Don't allow yourself to be dragged away by a barely perceptible undertow. When you are in the eye of the hurricane, you can't see clearly anyway, so keep asking for His vision and He will increase your faith through your trials.

What helps you get back to Bedrock when you realize that you're in sinking sand? You may think you're in too deep, and that there is no way out. That is a lie. Jesus told us that He is The Way, remember? He said He is the Truth, the Life, and a solid Rock on which to stand.
Cling to Jesus, His Promises are a lifeline for sinking souls:

Jesus said, I will never leave you or forsake you.
He said He loves us with an everlasting love.
He warned, do not worry about your life.
He said that every thing in heaven & earth is under in His control.
and, His Word says that ALL things do work together for the good.

In these uncertain times our troubles seem heavy and feel neverending. But, we cannot rely on fleeting feelings to guide us; The Lord calls us to anchor our hope in His unchanging promises. That is where the real reality lies: in the Truth of His Word. When dark days seem as if they will never cease, remember that is a lie. We are citizens of heaven, our future is secure, so keep looking UP, not around. The Bible says our earthy troubles are light and momentary, compared to the glorious riches in store for those who choose to HURRY UP to HIM AND WAIT for HIM:

Therefore, we do not loose heart!
Though OUTWARDLY we are wasting away; yet,
INWARDLY we are being renewed (by His LOVE) day by day

For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us
an ETERNAL GLORY that far outweighs them all
So we fix our eyes not on what is seen,
but on what is UNSEEN (that's FAITH)
For what is seen is temporary,
but what is unseen is ETERNAL!" (that's HOPE) 2 Cor 4:16-18