As I write this, the rain is
coming down in torrents. The question is whether there will be water in our
basement again.
When we retired nine years ago, my husband renovated
my parents' cottage and turned it into our new retirement home. It was a work in
progress for several years. We live in a beach community, and so we have a lot
of sand on our property. The one thing that we still have not been able to
rectify is getting water in our basement when the rains really come down.
This reminds me of Jesus' parable of the wise and
foolish men who built houses, one on the sand and one on the rock:
Matthew 7:24-27 - Therefore whoever hears these
sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his
house on the rock: and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew
and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock. But
everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a
foolish man who built his house on the sand: and the rain descended, the floods
came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it fell. And great was its
fall. (NKJV)
How does this apply to our lives? What sayings of
Jesus does He want us to hear and obey?
Let Your light so shine before men, that they may see
your good works and glorify your Father in heaven. (Matthew 5:16 NKJV) Others
will see Christ in us by the way that we live.
Love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good
to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute
you. (Matthew 5:44 NKJV)
Strive to please God, not to look good to others.
Forgive others as you have been forgiven. If we are
unable to forgive others, we will not be able to accept God's forgiveness.
Judge not, that you be not judged. (Matthew 7:1 NKJV)
Judge self, not others.
Jesus' teachings are rock solid. Only when we build
our lives on the solid foundation of Jesus' teachings, and put them into
practice in our lives, will we be able to withstand the storms of life. Let's
make sure that the foundation of our house is built on the Rock -- Jesus
Himself. Our survival depends on it.
As the well-known hymn says:
On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand,
All other ground is sinking sand;
All other ground is sinking sand.
Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank You for Jesus, the
solid Rock upon which we can build our lives. Help us to follow His teachings
and stand firm in our faith so that when the struggles and storms of life
descend upon us, we will be "more than conquerors through Him Who loved us."
(Romans 8:37 NKJV) In Jesus' name, we pray. Amen.
Dee Renaud
eddeerenaud@gmail.com
Sauble Beach, Ontario, Canada
Thanks to http://daily.presbycan.ca
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