It all about the Foundation

October 11, 2018

Proverbs 24: 3-6

“By wisdom, a house is built, and by understanding it is established; by knowledge the rooms are filled with all precious and pleasant riches.   A wise man is full of strength, and a man of knowledge enhances his might, for by wise guidance you can wage your war, and in abundance of counselors there is victory.”

Both Matthew and Luke record Jesus’ words in their gospels, Matthew 7:24-27, and Luke 6:46-49, and let us see what they recall Jesus saying.  “Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do what I tell you?  Everyone who comes to me and hears my words and does them, I will show you what he is like: he is like a man building a house he dug deep and laid the foundation on the rock. And when a flood arose, the stream broke against that house and could not shake it, because it had been well built.  But the one who hears and does not do them is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. When the stream broke against it, immediately it fell, and the ruin of that house was great.”

When building a house, a marriage, a career, or your life and especially your spiritual life it must have a solid foundation.  When making my home in Spring Branch, the builder first had an engineering company do a soil sample to see how stable the ground was.  After doing so, they designed a foundation that was engineered to support the structure, and because my builder was wise, we did as the engineers told him to do.

So as one who is building a marriage, a career, or a family and you call your self a Christian, do you do what the Master Builder tells you to do, or do you lean to your own understanding.  The Master Builder, Jesus Christ is very clear on what happens when we believe our plan will work and ignores His.

One must ponder on what is being put into your rooms, in your marriage, it must be trust, respect, and all built on love and understanding.  As you look at the rooms in your house, it matters not what facet or time of life, where marriage, family, business, or relationships, are these items in your home?  Integrity is a must, an active prayer life, learning to serve others, building your life on wise counsel, and seeking God’s leadership for all the rooms in your home.  If you rely on stuff, putting self-first, and how one looks, or wealth, the storms are coming, and it will fail. What are you filling the rooms within your marriage, family, business, and the many relationships of neighbors, friends, and family?

What about your family, dad’s is it all about you and what you desire, is golf, sports, and making money the number one priority, or is it investing in your growth in holiness and the spiritual growth of your wife and children.  All of the above have some amount of importance, but if you are not building a spiritual foundation not just for yourself but your family when the storms come, and they will come, it will fail.

What about counseling?  Men seem to have a problem with doing that and one wonders why could it be pride; do you see men who seek counsel as weak men? That is a lie from the pit; one only has to look at Scripture to know it is a lie.  But before one picks counselors, they should pray and ask God to send the right men to mentor or counsel them.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice