As I sat on the couch a few nights ago, the house began to move. The dog wandered unsteadily with her tail between her legs, not quite sure where to go or what to do. A SoCal native, my mind understood that we were having a minor earthquake. Even so, there is more that gets rattled than just the windows and I became a bit unsettled as I questioned every thump I heard.
The ground is not supposed to roll beneath our feet. The earth should be firm. We count on it without giving it a thought. We trust it. But there is nothing in this world that is worth our trust like the Creator of it.
The rabbis tell us in the Talmud that when there is a powerful display of nature, such as an earthquake, we should say a blessing. One example given is:
“Blessed are You, L‑rd our G‑d, King of the universe, whose power and might fill the world.”
Another simply states:
“Blessed are You, L‑rd our G‑d, King of the universe, who reenacts the works of creation.”
These blessings rightly ascribe credit to where our security and trust should lie. It reminds us that God exerts power and control of His creation.
Our God is stronger, more reliable, more “firm” than anything here. These recent earthquakes are good reminders to shake us out of our self-reliance and complacency of trusting anything in this world. We can trust in God, the one who can shake the foundations of the world – or hold them still.
Sometimes we take for granted that certain things will be solid, not giving them a second thought. It’s just the way it’s supposed to be. And then the earth shifts. Our health fails. A relationship changes. A job ends. But because our God is secure and firm, we can run to Him when all else seems shaken. For His kingdom is unshakable.
Has something shaken you recently?
Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire. Hebrews 12:28-29
