Rock

“Listen to me, you that pursue righteousness, you that seek the Lord. Look to the rock from which you were hewn, and to the quarry from which you were dug.” Isaiah 51:1

Torsten, our youngest, likes rocks. When we go to the beach, he’ll build with them. Then he’ll fill up the frisbee with rocks to bring home. If we go for a hike, he returns with rocks in his pockets. I don’t know if he has a future in geology, but he certainly enjoys rocks. Shape, size, coloring, the way it feels in the hand – he likes exploring the uniqueness of each new acquisition. Beyond difference is commonality: Each one has heft, a weightiness that declares its presence.

Speaking to the exiles, the prophet Isaiah reminds the people that they are rocks. While this might not seem a comforting metaphor at first glance, the Lord is reminding the people that they are from somewhere, just as a rock is hewn from a particular quarry. Each of them is different, unique; but each one of them is also hewn from the promise God made to Abraham and Sarah long ago. Each is cut from the covenantal promise which God has not forgotten. Each is therefore perfectly suitable to be a building block for the work God will do to rebuild their homeland when they return.

In the mercy of Jesus Christ, you who were once cut off from God have now been cut from the quarry of grace. There is always rebuilding work to be done. Remember that you are rock, wonderfully and fearfully made. You have purpose in God’s reconstructive work, built upon the unshakeable foundation of Christ, the once-rejected cornerstone. So, rock on!

Be well, friends. You are loved.

Building God, in a world where we have knocked down so much that is good, you always seek to build us up. Help us to trust ourselves in your hands, to believe that your righteous work is what we should pursue. Today, let us stand securely on Jesus, our Rock. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Image: Cairn by Torsten, Newport State Park, Door County, WI. July 12, 2020.