My Soul is Hidden
Hi, I’m Joni Eareckson Tada with a beautiful old hymn—a hymn with such powerful words. Just listen.
A wonderful Savior is Jesus my Lord, a wonderful Savior to me;
He hideth my soul in the cleft of the rock, where rivers of pleasure I see.
He hideth my soul in the cleft of the rock that shadows a dry, thirsty land;
He hideth my life in the depths of His love and covers me there with His hand
And covers me there with His hand.
Isn’t that a great image? How God hides us in the cleft of a rock, and covers us with His hand? I just love that image. Because sometimes when my sin feels so overwhelming, or I feel frightened of the future, man I want to be covered up; I want safety and to be hidden in the shadow of the Rock of Ages. Being covered there with God’s hand is so comforting, reassuring— it’s safe and secure. To think there is a place carved out; a niche that God has prepared just for you. Plus, there are so many beautiful Bible verses that come to mind whenever I sing this song. I guess if we were to do a little Bible study right here, we could flip to First Corinthians Chapter 10, to discover that Christ is the rock. He is the spiritual rock in which the Father hides us; which gives a fascinating insight into another passage in Exodus where it says, “The Lord said, there is a place near me where you may stand on a rock. When my glory passes by, I will put you in a cleft in that rock and cover you with my hand.”
Oh friend, no harm can come to you there. No evil can touch you. All of hell might rail against you, but in the cleft of that rock, Christ Jesus, you are so safe. No matter how terrible the hardships, no injury can be done to your soul when you are in Jesus. And I think that’s why I love this hymn so much. It is a song of assurance; a song to instill confidence in God the Father that nothing is going to hurt you when we are covered in Christ. Oh, and for me in this wheelchair, with quadriplegia, and all that goes with it, this is so reassuring.
Isaiah Chapter 25 says of God, “You have been a refuge for the poor, a refuge for the needy in his distress, a shelter from the storm and a shade from the heat.” And Psalm 32 verse 7 says of the Lord, “You are my hiding place; you will protect me from trouble and surround me with songs of deliverance.” Wow! Such great Bible verses! And this little story has certainly underscored our theme today. So if you have time, later on, maybe open up a hymnal and flip to this wonderful old hymn, “He Hideth My Soul.” The words are so powerful: He hideth your soul in the cleft of the rock that shadows a dry, thirsty land. He hides your soul in the depths of His love and covers you there with His hand. That makes a marvelous prayer, doesn’t it? I do it all the time, and I would encourage you to do the same. Christ is your rock … immovable … unshakable … safe … secure. So run to Him today and hide.
Song: He Hideth My Soul, Written by Fanny Crosby (1890), Public Domain
© Joni and Friends
