Houses Built On Foundations of Sand

Matthew 7:24-29 KJV; Hurricane Idalia is coming near the coast. The wise man builds his house upon a rock. The wise man hears the Word of God and actually does the will. Support and help your neighbor in time of need.

Avoiding the Mire

Deliver me out of the mire, and let me not sink: let me be delivered from them that hate me, and out of the deep waters. (Psalm 69:14)

There is small spot on one of the islands in front of my home of sinking sand. It is a little over a foot wide; yet, it's a bit unnerving to accidentally step into it. As one's ankles and then calves become engulfed in sand you will not tarry. You will step out of it quickly and change your course just as fast. I do not know how much of a person it would swallow if one chose to test the sand. I have never desired to find out.

Sometimes we are our own worst enemies. We go in ways that are dangerous to ourselves and may even be active in leading others in the wrong way, as well. We stray from the path that Jesus prepared for us and purposefully attempt to travel the path of the unrighteous. There are many dangers on this path that leads away from our Father's house and His will. Sinking in mucky, uncharted swamps is only one of them.

When we find ourselves in danger of sinking in the mire it is time to change course. It is time, to ask for God's help to get back on the path that He has prepared for us.

If you find yourself alone and sinking fast know there is one who can rescue you. There is only one who can save you. Ask and He will lead you on the path of eternal life in His Kingdom. 

God's Peace - Pr. J

Storms Will Come; Prepare

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. (Matt 7:24-27 KJV)

Open your eyes and see. See what you have built your house upon. Is your spiritual house built upon the rock who is Jesus the Christ? Or is it built upon the sand that will eventually crumble and leave you without shelter or comfort? What condition is your house in? Do you say you believe; but, do you do nothing that keeps that house intact? Are you straying from that solid foundation, which is the word of God? 

Open your eyes and see. See where you have put your treasures. You may have acquired lots of "stuff." But, what condition is it in? Have you taken the time to maintain it? Or, are you sitting back and watching it fall apart because you are  too busy doing other things that are more pleasurable at the moment? What good is it to work to have lots of "stuff" if we are only going to let it rot away or get blown away in a storm. 

Open your eyes and see. Look around you and see where your responsibilities lie. When storms come; whether they are physical or spiritual, you cannot blame God for the storms because you have not taken the time to prepare for the storms. He has given us eyes to see what needs done. He has given us minds to know how to prepare. He has given us hands to do the work. If we want to hang on to the things that God has given us, we need to own the responsibility to take care of them.

Storms will come. They are inevitable. Prepare wisely. Open your eyes and see what needs shoring up before chaos comes. 

God grant us open eyes to see and the desire and energy to care for all that He has given us. 

God's Peace - Pr. J

Build Upon A Rock

“Everyone then who hears these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock. The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on rock. And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not act on them will be like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell—and great was its fall!”  (Matt 7:24-27 NRSV)

The house that will stand; the congregation that will stand, must be build upon the rock, who is Jesus the Christ. (1 Cor 10:4) A congregation built on any other foundation other than faith in Jesus, will not stand as a church of God. The building may survive. The people may even gather often. But, without Jesus as the foundation of all that is done in that building, as a church it will fail.

Let faith in Christ be the rock of our foundation that we might stand tall and give all glory to God.

God's Peace - Pr. J

Built Upon A Solid Foundation

“Everyone then who hears these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock. The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on rock. And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not act on them will be like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell—and great was its fall!” (Matt 7:24-27 NRSV)

This past year I've questioned the wisdom of the powers that be that determine construction codes. Years ago, we put a mobile home on a piece of property in Gay, Michigan; a little town on Lake Superior. To prepare the spot we used concrete runners under the mobile home so that it would not sink or shift. Our son, just put a mobile home on land in Flagler County. Here in Florida the pad that the mobile home will sit on is made of sand. There is no concrete slab or runners under the home. I am sure that the engineers and others more knowledgeable about building in Florida know what they are doing. Yes; of course, there are some really good tie downs and concrete blocks securing and leveling the house. But, when I first heard that there must be a pad of sand laid first, I was a bit confused. But; then again, we don't normally put a slab of concrete under a wood home, either. Blocks are usually used to hold it up and level it and that has worked for a very long time. 

So, houses are normally built on something solid; like concrete slabs or blocks. There has to be a sturdy base to keep the home from crumbling down. Likewise; our faith must be built on something solid. The foundation of our faith is the truth, who is Jesus Christ. Jesus is the cornerstone that holds the house of God together. If the house of God, if the church, is built on anything less than Jesus; if it is built on egos or greed or upon our own self-righteousness; then it will surely fall.

Paul wrote to the Ephesians:  "So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are citizens with the saints and also members of the household of God, built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the cornerstone. In him the whole structure is joined together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord; in whom you also are built together spiritually into a dwelling place for God." (Eph 2:19-22)

God's Peace - Pr. J

Rescue Me!

"Rescue me from the mire,
    do not let me sink;
deliver me from those who hate me,
    from the deep waters."
                              Psalm 69:14 NIV

On one of the islands in front of my home in Aura there is a small spot of sinking sand. It is a little over a foot wide; yet, it's a bit unnerving to accidentally step into it. As one's ankles and then calves become engulfed in sand you will not tarry. You will step out of it as quickly as possible and change your course just as fast. I do not know how much of a person this sinking sand would swallow if one chose to test it. I have never desired to find out.

Sometimes we are our own worst enemies. We go in ways that are dangerous to ourselves and may even be active in leading others in the wrong way, as well. We stray from the path that Jesus prepared for us and purposefully attempt to travel the path of the unrighteous. There are many dangers on this path that lead us away from our Father's house. Sinking in mucky, uncharted swamps is only one of them.

When we find ourselves in danger of sinking in the mire it is time to change course. It is time, to ask for God's help to get back on the path that He has prepared for us.

If you find yourself alone and sinking fast know there is one who can rescue you. There is only one who can save you. Ask and He will lead you on the path of eternal life in His Kingdom. 

God's Peace - Pr. J

Sinking Sand

"Rescue me from the mire,
    do not let me sink;
deliver me from those who hate me,
    from the deep waters." 
                    Psalm 69:14 NIV

There is small spot of sinking sand on one of the islands in front of our home in Aura. This spot of sinking sand is only a little over a foot wide; yet, it's a bit unnerving to accidentally step into it. As one's ankles and then calves become quickly engulfed in sand you will not tarry. You will step out of it quickly and change your course as fast you can. I do not know how deep this sandy hole is or how much of a person it would swallow if one chose to test it by staying in it. I have never desired to find out.

Yet, how often do we decide to linger when we know full well that we are sinking in a mire of sin? Sometimes we are our own worst enemies. We go in ways that are dangerous to ourselves and may even be active in leading others in the wrong way, as well. We stray from the path that Jesus prepared for us and purposefully attempt to travel the path of the unrighteous. There are many dangers on this path that leads away from our Father's house. Sinking in mucky, uncharted swamps is only one of them.

When we find ourselves in danger of sinking in the mire it is time to change course. It is time to quit following in the way the devil is leading you. It is time, to ask for God's help to get back on the path that He has prepared for us.

If you find yourself alone and sinking fast know that there is one who can rescue you. There is only one who can save you. Ask and He will lead you on the path of eternal life in His Kingdom. 

God's Peace - Pr. J