Digging Deeper: A Solid Foundation
READY:
“Everyone, then, who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it.”
Matthew 7:24-27 (ESV)
A SOLID FOUNDATION
SET:
In 2020, when things started to reopen after the shutdown, we decided to build a house. There was so much planning and preparation that went into turning a wooded lot into a livable home. Before we could get to the fun stuff like picking out lighting, floors and paint colors, we had to decide on a floorplan and determine where we wanted the house it sit on the lot. Since we weren’t going to have a basement we decided to build a really big garage (insert all man excitement here). It was important to have plenty room for our vehicles, lawn equipment and space for a shop. Making these changes to this one space of the house that hadn’t ever crossed my mind resulted in lots of extra planning and work for the architect. Once they had the blueprint redrawn, we then had to figure out placement of the house so that we stayed within the lot lines. All in all it took nearly three months after we decided to build before we were ready to get started. As excited as I was to move on to picking out the fun stuff for the livable space it was imperative that we get the foundation right first.
In today’s passage we read what Matthew recorded from Jesus telling us about another foundation that we need to take the time to get just right. Jesus says that we would be wise to build our house (life) upon His words – that if we do so, when the wind and waves come we will be able to stand strong. He didn’t say IF they come but WHEN because we can be sure difficulties will happen. None of us want to walk through hard times but we are told repeatedly in God’s Word that while we are here on earth we will face difficulties. What we can do is prepare for them before the first sign of a breeze appears by building a firm foundation. We do that by storing up the promises of God in our hearts as we spend time each day with him in his word. Jesus gives us a warning in the person of the foolish man who builds a house on sand. If you’ve ever been to the beach or seen video of the tide going in and out you can understand why sand isn’t the best place to build a house and how it is easily knocked down.
Just like it took time to get the foundation right four our new home it takes time to build your foundation with Jesus. The wind and waves that come our way look different in different seasons so we have to spend time with him daily to make sure we are prepared for whatever is headed our way. We need not be anxious about the impending hard times because we can trust that we have a firm foundation in our good Shepherd who will not leave our side!
GO:
- Where is your foundation built? On the sand of self or the Rock of Jesus?
- How will you be ready for the hard when it inevitably comes your way?
WORKOUT:
- James 1:22-25
- Psalm 1:1–2
- Matthew 7:11
- Matthew 7:24-27
OVERTIME:
Jesus, thank you for being our firm foundation, the rock on which we stand. I think of the song that says “when everything around me is shaken, I’ve never been more glad, that I put my faith in Jesus, because He’s never let me down.” Lord it’s true that even though we face seasons so difficult we aren’t sure how we will ever get through them, we know beyond a shadow of a doubt that we will get through them because you are with us. Father, let us be like the wise man who listens to you and builds a foundation upon you and you alone. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Minda Seagraves has been married to her best friend, Russell, for 17 years and is mom to Carson and Maddie. She is also a full-time missionary with the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, serving as a chaplain to local female high school teams and supports 380 staff across four states in the U.S. and 20 countries in East Africa as the Regional Director of Talent Advancement with FCA. Minda and her family live in Acworth and have been attending NorthStar Church since 2020.