[ www.flickr.com/photos/93314160@N04/8514254102/ ]

 

_______________________________________________

 

ROCK SOLIDITY

_____

 

Psalm 18 (1-19)

 

For the director of music. Of David the servant of the Lord. He sang to the Lord the words of this song when the Lord delivered him from the hand of all his enemies and from the hand of Saul. He said:

 

I love you, Lord, my strength.

 

The Lord is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer;

my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge,

my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.

 

I called to the Lord, who is worthy of praise,

and I have been saved from my enemies.

 

The cords of death entangled me;

the torrents of destruction overwhelmed me.

The cords of the grave coiled around me;

the snares of death confronted me.

 

In my distress I called to the Lord;

I cried to my God for help.

 

From his temple he heard my voice;

my cry came before him, into his ears.

 

The earth trembled and quaked,

and the foundations of the mountains shook;

they trembled because he was angry.

Smoke rose from his nostrils;

consuming fire came from his mouth,

burning coals blazed out of it.

He parted the heavens and came down;

dark clouds were under his feet.

He mounted the cherubim and flew;

he soared on the wings of the wind.

He made darkness his covering, his canopy around him –

the dark rain clouds of the sky.

Out of the brightness of his presence clouds advanced,

with hailstones and bolts of lightning.

 

The Lord thundered from heaven;

the voice of the Most High resounded.

He shot his arrows and scattered the enemy,

with great bolts of lightning he routed them.

The valleys of the sea were exposed

and the foundations of the earth laid bare at your rebuke, Lord,

at the blast of breath from your nostrils.

  

He reached down from on high and took hold of me;

he drew me out of deep waters.

 

He rescued me from my powerful enemy,

from my foes, who were too strong for me.

They confronted me in the day of my disaster,

but the LORD was my support.

  

He brought me out into a spacious place;

he rescued me because he delighted in me.

 

_____

 

Isaiah 26:4 (Amplified Bible)

 

So trust in the Lord (commit yourself to Him, lean on Him, hope confidently in Him) forever; for the Lord God is an everlasting Rock [the Rock of Ages].

 

_______________________________________________

 

ROCK SOLIDITY

 

To try and explain my choice of name I have inserted a dictionary meaning of the word "solidity". However, I want to emphasise that although I do aspire to be of strong character, my belief and experience has been that this has been impossible for me without the strength and grace extended to me by my Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. I pray that these images and comments would give glory to Him and be a small testimony to His love for me as reflected in His influence in my life.

 

His grace has been my sufficiency and I pray that I will come to His cross over and over to confess my weaknesses and find new life in Him.

 

so·lid·i·ty

/səˈliditē/

Noun:

The quality or state of being firm or strong in structure: "the solidity of Romanesque architecture".

The quality of being substantial or reliable in character.

Synonyms

firmness - hardness - fastness - strength - soundness

 

_____________________________________________

 

A MIND FOR CHRIST

 

_____

 

Romans 12:1-2 Amplified Bible (AMP)

 

I appeal to you therefore, brethren, and beg of you in view of [all] the mercies of God, to make a decisive dedication of your bodies [presenting all your members and faculties] as a living sacrifice, holy (devoted, consecrated) and well pleasing to God, which is your reasonable (rational, intelligent) service and spiritual worship.

 

Do not be conformed to this world (this age), [fashioned after and adapted to its external, superficial customs], but be transformed (changed) by the [entire] renewal of your mind [by its new ideals and its new attitude], so that you may prove [for yourselves] what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God, even the thing which is good and acceptable and perfect [in His sight for you].

_____________________________________________

 

GOOD AND EVIL / LIGHT and DARKNESS

 

_____

 

John 10:10 (NIV)

10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.

 

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. (John 10:10, ESV)

 

_______________________________________________

 

NOT BY POWER, NOR BY MIGHT, BUT BY HIS SPIRIT.

 

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

DEDICATION

 

I wish to dedicate this Flickrstream to my late friend and partner, Bill Greenfield, who taught me much about "agape" love - through his genuine affection, concern and compassion for me, for his dedication and commitment to family, friends and all the causes he supported, and the absence of malice in his heart. He called himself a doubting Thomas, but all of us are, at times at least - and he was at least honest about it, which I have not always been. He died on Jan 6th, 2001, and I did wonder why he was taken away on Epiphany - but of course it is so that there would be a greater Epiphany when the Lord received him in Glory.