In 2003, the 700-ton Old Man of the Mountain—a 40-foot-tall natural outcropping of granite ledges in the White Mountains of New Hampshire—crumbled and slid down to the base below. Some of the residents responded to the incident with deep emotional sadness and devastation. One man said that he had lost the oldest member of his family. Since the rocks rolled, local businesses have also seen tourist revenue take a tumble.

David used the metaphor of a rock to describe God: “Be my rock of protection, a fortress where I will be safe. You are my rock and my fortress” (Psalm 31:2-3). David described God in this way because He provided stability and security for him and his people (Psalm 31:4). To take refuge in God is better than hiding in a man-made fortress or behind huge rocks.

When the Bible spoke of the Lord as the Rock, it was a symbol of strength and faithful permanence and a place where people in danger often took refuge (Psalm 31:5). Yet, Israel went looking for other rocks—gods or sources of stability, strength, and refuge—and experienced extreme disappointment. These other rocks ultimately crumbled under the weight of life because they weren’t the same as Israel’s “eternal Rock” (Isaiah 26:4). God had to remind His people that He alone was the only true Rock—the source of stability, strength, permanence, and faithfulness.

There are times when the mountains or rocks we depend on—family, money, relationships, networks, and careers—suddenly crumble in the middle of the night. May these times remind us to reject all other false rocks, to call on the Rock that is powerful and faithful, and to depend on the one eternal Rock who will never crumble.

NLT 365-day reading plan passage for today: Acts 5:1-16