But He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. 2 Corinthians 12:9.

I was with you in weakness and in fear and in much trembling, and my message and my preaching were not in persuasive words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, so that your faith would not rest on the wisdom of men, but on the power of God. 1 Corinthians 2:3-5.

If these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful. 2 Peter 1:8.

Devote yourselves to prayer with an alert mind and a thankful heart. Colossians 4:2.

And continuing our 351 Old Testament prophecies, promises of God, fulfilled in Jesus Christ, we come to number 28: The Spiritual Rock of Israel. Exodus 17:6: “Behold, I will stand before you there on the rock at Horeb; and you shall strike the rock, and water will come out of it, that the people may drink.” And Moses did so in the sight of the elders of Israel. And, 1 Corinthians 10:4: And all drank the same spiritual drink, for they were drinking from a spiritual rock which followed them; and the rock was Christ.

There is something so profound as we take God’s hand and walk with Him. Our trust and hope in Him grows strong, strengthened in the encounter He brings; and in drawing near to Him, in that very nearness, is peace and trust in Him. I realized this morning in my time with Him that all of the problems in our fallen world, individually and collectively, that seem so big to us, are no match for the immensity of Creator God – Father, Son, Spirit. When our problems loom large how can our awareness of Him not grow smaller, distant? And yet, the Creator of all of creation, creation so vast our minds cannot comprehend the fullness of it, is bigger than any problem this world can bring. And as we realize that, even as we live through all the problems of this world, our faith and trust in Him is strengthened and our hope is found in Him. This fallen world fights against hope in God. But as you turn to Him in great need, He is here and He is with you. Not by our power and might will the problems of this fallen world be conquered. The Spiritual Rock of Israel is the Spiritual Rock of us all. Do not let your faith rest on the wisdom of men. Creator God IS. Pray that the hearts of all men, great and small, powerful and powerless, will realize their need for our Father who loves us and is ready to help as we trust Him. Can you imagine when we are all of us, all generations of His children, with Him? All barriers and divisions gone. But before faith came, we were kept in custody under the law, being shut up to the faith which was later to be revealed. Therefore the Law has become our tutor to lead us to Christ, so that we may be justified by faith. But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor. For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s descendants, heirs according to promise. Galatians 3:23-29. Those words of Paul spoken to a people steeped in traditions of men then, were shocking! We still create barriers pushing people out. One day we will each of us be baptized into Jesus’ death. But now that faith has come…how? The One prophesied, the One at the very beginning with God who is God, the Word who became flesh, He led the way by His physical death for us into the resurrection to life eternal with God. Do we truly think this fallen world is all there is to life? From tears to Joy! And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them, and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away.” Revelation 21:3-4. I don’t hear any divisions of any kind in that promise, that beautiful promise of our Creator God. Imagine how much we will learn together with Him when the “first things” have passed away never to be again. From tears to Joy! We can scarcely believe to understand, but with His help, we can and our faith and trust in Him can grow and expand and be. The greatest joy you will ever know is with Creator God who loves us and is working always for our good with Him. Living into that trust and hope you find the patience to wait trusting His timing for all things, because this tremendous work of God takes time. But we wait not in vain. We wait looking to Him. And He is here doing His beautiful and needed work in our own hearts and minds. It begins where it must, in a small seed planted in our own hearts that grows and flourishes with Him with us. But now that faith has come!