My Fortress and My Rock. . .

Jesus Loves Me - arrangement by Greg Howlett
(Please click for background music as you read this message of H.I.M.)

A while ago, my aunt sent me a story about a 106-year-old mansion called the “Clingstone” situated in Rhode Island's Narragansett Bay. It has more or less been in the same family for all these years. It appears this majestic structure receives much tender loving care as many family members and friends all gather together annually around Memorial Day to clean it from top to bottom.  It obviously has much sentiment to everyone as there are 23 rooms on three stories radiating off a vast central hallway, as well as 65 windows and 10 bedrooms. I cannot begin to imagine how many bathrooms there must be! The view from any angle of this mansion, on the rock, however, must be absolutely breathtaking day or night and the sunsets would be spectacular!

When I read this story and looked at the pictures that complemented it, it reminded me of a song I used to sing as a child in Sunday School entitled, “The Wise Man Built His House Upon a Rock." It was one of my favourites, as our Sunday School teacher taught us to sing it with much animation and everyone would have so much fun building their houses and making the rain come down as we all sang along. It went something like this…

The wise man built his house upon the rock, 

The wise man built his house upon the rock, 

The wise man built his house upon the rock, 

And the rains came tumbling down! 

The rains came down and the floods came up, 

The rains came down and the floods came up, 

The rains came down and the floods came up, 

And the house on the rock stood firm. 

The foolish man built his house upon the sand, 

The foolish man built his house upon the sand, 

The foolish man built his house upon the sand, 

And the rains came tumbling down! 

The rains came down and the floods came up, 

The rains came down and the floods came up, 

The rains came down and the floods came up, 

And the house on the sand went SPLAT!

So build your house on the Lord Jesus Christ, 

So build your house on the Lord Jesus Christ, 

Build your house on the Lord Jesus Christ 

and the Blessings will come down. 

The blessings will come down as your prayers go up, 

The blessings will come down as your prayers go up, 

The blessings will come down as your prayers go up, 

So, build your house on the Lord!

Little did I realize, so many years later, what tremendous impact those words, and other favourite simple childhood songs like "Jesus Loves Me," would mean in my life, while living with Stage IV breast cancer. I am so very grateful to have had the opportunity to go to Sunday School when I was a child, so I could learn the teachings of God that would become the precious basis of my foundation throughout my life!

By claiming Psalm 31:3, “For thou are my Rock and my Fortress,” God has brought me, and continues to bring me, through many gusty storms, while the black clouds of the unknown, the gales of uncertainty, and the waves of the doubt have come and gone throughout my life.  It is, however, simply by knowing Jesus truly does love me that I can withstand the turbulent times because I trust and believe that God, who is my Rock, will always take care of me as I put my trust in HIM, when I read Psalm 55:22, “Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and He shall sustain thee.”

Dark clouds of sorrow will often bring
 showers of blessing when we cast
our cares onto HIM.