“Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine
and puts them into practice
is like a wise man who built his house on the rock.
The rain came down,
the streams rose,
and the winds blew and beat against that house;yet it did not fall,
because it had its foundation on the rock.”
Isn’t it easy to hear the words
and put them into practicewhen the storms seem a long way away?
When the beach is sunny and warm
we pitch our umbrellas upon the shores of life.Our umbrellas become shacks
our shacks houses
our houses mansions
our mansions estatesand before we know it
we’ve built our entire lives on a foundation
of sand.
But the storms are brewing.
The rain is coming.
The streams will rise
and the winds will blow.And at that time it will not matter
how lavish a mansion we have created
how many treasures we have stored.All that will matter
will be that left standing.
And all that will be standing
will have its foundation on the rock.
Another warning of misplaced hope. Through our lives, we build many things. We’re often proud of our accomplishments. Whether it be our belief systems, our wealth, our relationships, our social networks, our intelligence, or any other of the thousand things we build in our lives, we each have large luxurious mansions with treasures stored up. The question for us is whether we have built on the foundation of Christ.
The beach is a wonderfully attractive place. We’re lured often by the view and the serene beauty.
The only promise we have in life is that storms are coming. No matter who you are, whether you believe in God or not, your life will be pounded by storms. The issue for each of us is that by the time they hit, it will be too late to make changes to our foundation. The time to seek God is not when the storms arrive, but long before they are on the horizon.