Devotions
When the foundations are destroyed
When the foundations are being destroyed, what can the righteous do? – Psalm 11:3 (NIV)
Many Christians know the song “It is well with my soul,” for it has been translated into many languages. Some know the story behind it, others maybe not. Horatio Spafford, the author, was a businessman in Chicago. He and his wife had four daughters and one son. In a period of two years, they lost their business in a fire; their last-born son died as an infant; their four daughters drowned in the Atlantic when their ship collided with another while going to Europe with their mother. After being rescued from the accident alone, when his wife arrived in London, she telegraphed Spafford, saying, “Saved alone, what shall I do?” it was when he was on his way to reunite with his wife that he composed that song. His story looks like Job’s story. The foundations of their lives were being destroyed. What does the just do?
Though we are spiritual
beings, we are also physical, and the things that make us who we are physical
and tangible. These are our foundations. Our families, careers, businesses, and
countries are pillars that sustain us. It is not wise to think those things are
irrelevant because you are a Christian; that would be what the Bible calls
being overly righteous and overwise (Ecclesiastes 7:16). Lives crumble when
those things are removed, and it does not make you less spiritual when you are
affected. Think about the Christians in Ukraine. Can they remain unaffected
because they pray and believe in God? One day they were peaceful, flourishing
in their country; the next day, they were bombarded by a powerful army of
another country, which outwardly looked more powerful and more equipped than
theirs. And it was not long ago that they were fighting the pandemic.
Unfortunately, nothing is new; the world has always been in turmoil.
Foundations are being destroyed every single day. What we thought was our
protection and security are removed, families are torn apart, and systems are
ruined. People who lived before us maybe did not have the pandemic and the
likes but had their set of problems. As human beings, we are constantly
wondering, what will happen next?
Here is where God asks
the question to his children. What do you do when the foundations are
destroyed? What do you do when the pillars are shaken, and the protective cover
is removed? Notice that the Bible does not say if the foundations are being
destroyed, but when. It is not a matter of if, it is certain, it will happen.
Then what do you do when it happens? God’s question is very hard, and the
answer to it is equally complex: the just shall live by faith (Habakkuk 2:4b).
Walking and living by faith is hard. We are physical beings of flesh and blood;
therefore, when the flesh sees such a word, it screams no! I can’t do it. I am
wired for the touch, the smell and the feel; I can’t do it. However, you must
live by faith if you want to please God. Hebrews 11:38 says, “Now the just
shall live by faith; but if anyone draws back, my soul has no pleasure in him.”
So when the foundations crumble around you, and you are left alone wondering
what to do, silence the flesh, strengthen yourself in the Lord like David, bend
down and pick up the pieces and keep going forward by faith, trusting God one
step at a time. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will
guard your heart and mind through Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:7).
Posted : Dec 22, 2025