Luke 6:48 (NKJV)
“He is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid the foundation on the rock. And when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently against that house, and could not shake it, for it was founded on the rock.”
Have you ever tried building a tower of blocks to just have it fall over when it got too high? How about tying a rope to something that was supposed to be an anchor to have it move from the weight? Maybe just trying to cross a creek at a shallow part of a river to have your feet slip or the current try to push you under?
We all know there are times in life when things topple, things shift without warning, or you slip at the most inopportune time. There are even times that we may feel so overwhelmed that it’s like we are under water and unable to get to the surface. It does not matter what analogy that you use, but complications will arise even if you try to plan out every detail in your life.
There were too many times when I have also felt that I was stuck on the wrong side of a raging river with no hope to make it across. I can see where I want to go, but this obstacle I am facing seems insurmountable. What makes it worse is that I cannot see what dangers that may lie underneath the surface to prevent me from making it across.
We have all been at a place where we have the determination to keep going, but the water continues to get deeper till your foot slips and we are forced back to the side on which we started. We may have even tried to plan for a lifeline that broke or pile rocks that are swept away before we can jump across, then we lay there on the shore out of breath, waterlogged, wanting to give up.
I’m not sure I ever made it across some of the rivers I faced at times earlier in my life because many things seem very unclear. All I know is that I feel fortunate that I was able to make my way to some solid ground on a path that kept moving me forward. Have you ever felt this way or even that someone was watching over you?
I know I have spent many periods walking between the patches of steady and unsteady ground in my life. This is when I realized that I never really crossed, but rather strode along the bank only crossing some of the small streams that fed that raging river. It was not until a few years ago I finally figured out that I lacked the strong steady base in my life needed to build upon.
I was looking in the wrong places for answers and so much of what I was building was wobbly and unsteady like that tower. I never fully understood this until I turned my life back to Christ and saw that I was fooling myself. All those small streams I made it across had me thinking I was getting somewhere, but really they were either a test, a learning experience, or just an annoyance while I avoided the path I was supposed to be on.
This is also when the opening scripture began to have a new meaning to me, I was missing that solid base. Most of what I had in my life was good, but there always seemed to be that dark cloud or that disaster waiting to happen. Sometimes it felt like I was looking in a funhouse mirror because many times things just weren’t how they looked.
If you add in the two verses before the opening scripture you find an even more profound realization. Luke 6:46-47, “But why do you call Me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do the things which I say? Whoever comes to Me, and hears My sayings and does them, I will show you whom he is like.” How many of us have not taken good advise of followed direction? I know I have. Or is that have not?
God’s word is filled with His wisdom, especially if you read the words Jesus spoke throughout the Gospels. This wisdom has spoken to generations that have succeeded when it was followed. Where our priorities should be, how we should act, and how we should treat others and Jesus’ love and acceptance of others set a standard that few could follow.
I spent years thinking that I could never live up to this standard that Jesus set so I many ways I did not really try to follow everything that I should have. My life was built on all these feelings of inadequacy and misperceptions which cause the unsteady ground I was walking on. It was not until I understood that God knew I wasn’t perfect and accepted me as I was, that I was able to finally feel I had that steady base.
After all those years rejecting Jesus I could now see the truth in Psalm 118:22, “The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone.” Every one of us has done this from time to time throughout our lives, dismiss what is right in front of us because we may lack faith. Faith in God, faith in Jesus, and living out that faith in ourselves.
1 Corinthians 3:10-11 (NIV) helped me find the strength to stand confidently on the shores of that river ready for another go. “By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as a wise builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one should build with care. For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ.”
So, come stand next to me and gather those mighty stones of Christ, I will help you stack them to build that steady base you need. We have to take the time to build it right because it’s not about us impressing other people, it’s about us being able to face all the rivers in our future. Once you do you can begin reaching out across and not get swept away by the raging waters. Now pause to take a breath and please enjoy, “My Spirit Will Be Your Guide.”
MY SPIRIT WILL BE YOUR GUIDE
I am standing on the riverbank looking at the other side,
I begin to cross by wading and was almost swept away as I tried.
The current became relentless forcing me back to the shore,
Even though I was determined I could get no further than before.
I begin to gather stones so I can build a place to walk across,
The current keeps washing them away and soon what I built is lost.
Lord, am I destined to be stranded here with no hope to get ahead,
Always being swept back by the forces that have me in over my head.
My child, you are looking for the easy way to get you past your trouble,
And so far what you have tried to build was washed away like rubble.
Before you can start crossing again you must find my solid ground,
Then build a base to rise above the torrents that you have found.
In my word you will find the answers and the stone you will need,
My love and mercy brings it together for your foundation to succeed.
Now stand upon the base you’ve built and feel the strength you have inside,
Continue to keep your eyes on me and My Spirit Will Be Your Guide.
Simple Faith Christian
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Simple Faith Christian 