A Lesson In Steadfastness
The Harbour House came with a view that was unexpected. While surrounded by many trees, the house across the street from us is a rancher with few trees. So from our living room window, we look north with an unobstructed view towards the mountains and the valley through which Burrard Inlet runs. While I can’t see the water, I know it is there.
So it is with the Spirit. I may not be able to see Him with my eyes. But I know He is there with me, flowing through the valleys that I walk through, drawing me nearer and refreshing my weary heart.
My eyes are often drawn out the window towards the mountains. There is something calming, steadying about looking at something that does not shift and move. And I go back to Psalm 121:
“I lift up my eyes to the mountains—
where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord,
the Maker of heaven and earth.
He will not let your foot slip—
he who watches over you will not slumber;
indeed, he who watches over Israel
will neither slumber nor sleep.
The Lord watches over you—
the Lord is your shade at your right hand;
the sun will not harm you by day,
nor the moon by night.
The Lord will keep you from all harm—
he will watch over your life;
the Lord will watch over your coming and going
both now and forevermore.”
He is our harbour. A safe place to find refuge. He who formed the mountains and gave form to the peaks, He knows the mountains that are before me and will give me what I need to climb while He steadies my feet. He is the one that watches over me.
Every day and seemingly every hour the sky around the mountains is different. But the mountains do not change. They are steadfast. In a season where everything seems to be shifting, it is a reminder once more about the unshakeable nature of God.
Yet even mountains are subject to change slowly over time. They are still in the realm of created things. I did a quick google search of the word steadfast and this is what came first: firmly fixed in place; not subject to change; immovable. All throughout scripture we read of God’s steadfast love. His love, his khesed, is firmly fixed, not subject to change, immovable.
“Though the mountains be shaken
and the hills be removed,
yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken
nor my covenant of peace be removed,”
says the Lord, who has compassion on you.”
Isaiah 54:10
Bob and I have been having lots of conversations lately about what steadfastness looks like in our lives. How do we remain steady and resolute in the things that matter while circumstances and unknown factors are constantly shifting around us? How do we remain consistent when it’s so easy to be pulled into the chaos? The only way this is possible, the one thing I come back to again and again, is a complete and utter dependence on God. Which is easier said than done. I need daily reminders. And so I look out my window at creation declaring and reflecting the character of the Creator.
