Finding what we can reliably depend on in life sometimes involves acting counter to our most intense feelings. An illustration comes to mind from my brief experience with rock climbing. Backing over a cliff clutching a single rope, at least for me, goes against the survival instinct. To top it off, our climber-friend Fred kept telling me to lean back, away from the rock face. But I wanted to hold on to something solid, not lean back over an abyss. The result was, I lost my footing and dangled by the rope, repeatedly banging into the rock. Finally, out of necessity, I followed instructions and leaned back. My feet naturally touched the rock face as they were supposed to, and I then enjoyed rappelling down the wall.
There is
a greater-than-human
presence that
satisfies our
longings.
Leaning the wrong way is a common mistake in the realm of human relationships, too. Clinging to another person, or to an imagined ideal relationship, as the answer to our longing for love, security, and even self-worth, can leave us banging against the rocks. But it's never too late to lean back on God, to depend on infinite Love for support. There are plenty of reassuring instructions to guide us: "Delight thyself... in the Lord; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart. Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass." Ps. 37:4,5
