Don't have much experience building especially foundations. But I do remember building a “go kart". I use that term loosely because it was me and some neighborhood boys who found all this scrap wood and I had left over wheels, probably not much more that 6". Well we thought we could build something that could roll, as long as we were going downhill and someone gave us a head start push. So as I sat on it for the test run, (it was my wheels and I was the smallest, I got to go first), Jeff gave me a push, the wheels bowed out and I sunk in the middle. Needless to say, our design was flawed, we had no frame. We had no support, no structure.
When I read the parable of the wise and foolish builder, I think of that. Take a read of Matthew 7:24-27:
"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 the house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against the house, and it fell with a great crash."
The first obvious observation is where are you building? Not just your life- do you believe in God? But each area of life. It's not good enough, to simply say I have God as a part of my life. To have a solid foundation, we need to say each area of my life has God as its foundation.
Today, where do you need to strengthen your frame, your foundation? Is it in your family, workplace, responses, finances, truth, forgiveness, grace? Where do you need to establish a rock solid foundation?
The other observation that is so valuable about this story is that everyone gets wet. The storm impacts each builder. And that is true of you and me. Folks, our strong foundation doesn't exempt us from the storm, it provides protection, weathers us during the storm. I know that because of the many storms I have faced, the hurricane force winds or the blizzard. They were translated in marital storms, financial hurricans, moral floods, abuse type winds, miscarriages, and failure.
Folks, I have been learning; growing in asking a new question, not why the storm? But what do I need to do to button down the hatch and secure myself to my rock solid foundation? For me storms come and go in life, today I want to know that I am holding onto the presence of God and that his footings of love, truth, grace and forgiveness are my foundation. I want to be walled in by peace, hope, joy, patience as we endure the storm. Folks, it isn't about believing in the things of God, it is hearing and putting them into practice.
Today, what foundation do you need to make rock solid? And the storm that you are in today, what are one of God's secure promises do you need to hold onto and put into practice?