Life on the Edge
By Elin Henderson
“Now unto Him who is
able to keep you from falling…”
Jude 1:24a (KJV)
Do
you ever get the feeling that you are living life on the edge of a cliff? That
the dirt and rocks are crumbling under your feet, and the solid ground is
threatening to give way and send you tumbling? The pressures of life seem to be
pushing us over that edge. There is only one hope for rescue, for relief, for
safety... and that is “Him who
is able to keep you from falling.”
Many
of us can testify that we spend more of our time “on the edge” hanging on for
dear life than on solid ground. There are a lot of reasons for this. It is
partly because of the many pressures bearing upon us (family, work, friends,
even church), as well as pressures from within that we place on ourselves
(guilt, attempting to appear successful, etc.). And if that weren’t enough, our
enemy is constantly trying to use those same pressures to drive us over the
edge, where we fall into the sin of doubting God’s sufficiency.
As
we are experiencing these pressures, a panic can overtake us and send us in a
desperate search for help, for a solid footing. The world’s answer is “Eat
better, to exercise, talk to a friend, reduce our stress loads, take a
vacation, etc.” While that advice is not bad, at its best, it is only a
temporary fix.
For
a lasting solution, we need to be reaching out to the ONLY source of strength,
God Himself! His strong arm is always ready to reach down and rescue us. His
grip is not weak or insufficient. He won’t let go!! Only when WE
let go of HIS arm and start reaching for other things do we
find ourselves back where we started, tottering on the edge of the cliff once
more.
So
the next time the pressures of this life start pushing you towards the edge, and
the ground beneath your feet begins to crumble, reach out. Grab onto the only
TRUE source of help, the only One who can keep you stable as you live “life on
the edge.”
GOING DEEPER:
1. What are some ways that we can remind
ourselves to continuously reach out to Him?
Ideas: Time in His Word, memorizing the Word, and/or prayer (on our own
and with a good friend or mentor).
2. What if we do fall? Then what? Are we
left alone to fend for ourselves? Isn’t it great that He is there for us even
when we fail and fall?
FURTHER READING:
Oakwood’s
missionaries Elin Henderson (a registered nurse) and her husband Phil serve as
church planters with New Tribes in Mozambique, Africa. Elin is mother to twelve-year-old Callie and
nine-year-old Elias.
