Thursday thoughts: 'My anchor holds!'

Jill Johnson

As believers, we can feel God's presence and know He is sustaining us.”

I heard a song on the way to work this morning, and it really spoke to my heart. Years ago, our church had a benefit concert to raise money for our family. Our daughter with special needs, Missie, had been granted a spot in a residential facility, but the funding from the State of Georgia would not be in place for two months. Needless to say, we did not have the money to pay for the two months, as residential mental health care is very expensive.

Our dear friends from church set up a benefit concert on a Sunday evening. The song “My Anchor Holds” was sung by our dear friend, who was also our minister of music. I was thinking about this song in light of the word “anchor.” One of the definitions of anchor is to keep hold or be firmly fixed.

I can totally identify with this statement as it relates to my life. In the process of trials and tests, your anchor is what holds you together and keeps your faith grounded. I was thinking about the job of a physical anchor. It really has some of the same qualities and duties as God if we anchor our lives to Him.

First, if you are on a boat and need to get off, you drop the anchor. That anchor will dig into the seabed, which will create a strong resistance that will prevent the boat from drifting. You might be fishing, snorkeling, or just enjoying a sunny day. The anchor will continually secure that boat and hold it until you are ready to sail again. The anchor will actually hold the boat stable if the sea currents change or the winds become strong.

God will do the exact same thing for us. I don't know about you, but there are so many times when on the outside I might look like I have it all together when in reality on the inside I might be overwhelmed, stressed, and feel anything but steady. God, in his mercy and love for me, will not let me go. In Hebrews 6:19, the Bible says, "We have this hope as an anchor for our soul, firm and secure." No matter what I face, God is still on His throne and in control. He is my anchor for when my emotions are trying to tell me otherwise. My anchor holds!

Another thing the anchor does is allow the boat to weather the storms. When a storm comes up, the captain will put the anchor down. The ship might get tossed and turned by the waves, but the anchor will not let it break away or get lost at sea. I'm sure we can all identify with trials and tests that come into our lives.

I heard someone say you are either going into a trial, in the middle of a trial, or just coming out of one. It just is a part of life - probably not one any of us look forward to. However, if the anchor we are trusting is God, we have hope in the trials. Are the trials hard at times? Yes! Are the trials exhausting and draining? Yes! Will our anchor let us go? Never! Our God will provide comfort in the suffering, calm in the chaos, peace in the uncertainties, and hope for the journey. I know this is true because I have experienced it. My anchor holds!

I also thought about how most of the time we don't "see" the actual anchor when it is holding the boat steady. It is so deep in the water doing its job that it cannot be seen on the surface. It might be unseen, but the passengers on the boat feel safe. Sometimes I think that is how God works in our lives as well. When you are walking through a hard time or a difficult situation, people around you may not understand how you are managing to keep going. The testimony of how you are handling your difficult situation is the hope you have in God.

As believers, we can feel God's presence and know He is sustaining us. If I think back on my life and the trials and hard times my family has faced, I can honestly say I know we would not have made it without anchoring our lives to God. The hope in Him and His presence is what sustained us.

This quote I read fits perfectly. "In order to realize the worth of the anchor, one needs to feel the stress of the storm." Who is your anchor in the storm? I pray your hope is based on the anchor that can hold you firm and secure through all of the storms in this life. God is my anchor and my anchor holds!

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Jill Johnson finds spiritual applications in her everyday experiences as a wife, mother, grandmother, and Georgian. Jill is retired from the Georgia Baptist Mission Board and is available to speak to your church's women's gatherings. Reach her at jjohnson@gabaptist.org.