The Storms of Life

How do you react when a severe thunderstorm is in the area?  Do you worry that your house will suffer destruction?  Are you concerned the effects of wind and rain are going to move it off its foundation and cause its collapse?  You might if it was built with a faulty foundation of shifting sand.  Jesus said some people have lives that are like the house built on sand.  When life is going smooth all is well but when the storms came . . .

Jesus concluded the Sermon on the Mount with the following words: “Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock:And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not; for it was founded upon a rock.  And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it.”

Jesus pictures here two different houses.  Both appear to be well built.  The big difference in the two is the choice of foundation.  One chose solid, unmovable rock for the foundation.  It was secure when the storms came, it stood firm, the owner was not afraid of the storms.  The other home was built on shifting sands, and when the storms arrived it did not survive, it was destroyed.  Jesus said one man was wise the other foolish.

What are you building your life on?  What happens when the storms of life come? Some build on the latest offering of pop psychology.  Some choose to the promises of material wealth.  Another option some choose is the latest offering form the self-help crowd.  All these are foundations of sand for the people trying to build with Jesus.  The key to building a life with the solid foundation is hearing and then practicing what Jesus teaches. Not just hearing, hearing and doing.

What are you using for the foundation your life is building on?  Check the way you weather the storms of life.

—Denny