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Are You Building on Sand or Rock?

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sand foundation

I’ve been studying the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5 – 7)  for several months with my Sunday School class.  Slowly going through each verse of these two chapters has given me a better understanding of what it looks like to live as a follower of Christ.  Jesus began His sermon with the Beatitudes, Matthew 5:3-12, where He tells us what it means to be “blessed” or “happy”. He then teaches on our witness (being salt & light), the Law, anger, adultery, divorce, vows, revenge, loving your enemies, giving to the needy, prayer and fasting, money and possessions, worry, judging others, effective prayer, the golden rule, the narrow gate, the tree and it’s fruit, true disciples and lastly, building on a firm foundation.

In the conclusion of the sermon, Jesus presents us with two options – build on the rock or on the sand:

 “Therefore, everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them will be like a sensible man who built his house on the rock. The rain fell, the rivers rose, and the winds blew and pounded that house. Yet it didn’t collapse, because its foundation was on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of Mine and doesn’t act on them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. The rain fell, the rivers rose, the winds blew and pounded that house, and it collapsed. And its collapse was great!” -Matthew 7:24-27 (HCSB)

The person who hears the teaching of Jesus and applies it to their life is like a wise builder whose foundation is built on solid rock.  They have chosen to build their life of the truth of Christ and that truth will guide how they will live, impacting their actions and decisions. They have a foundation for their life that is unshakable, able to withstand any storm that comes.

But the person who hears the teachings of Jesus and then decides not to apply it to their life is like a foolish builder whose foundation is sand.  They have chosen to listen to what the culture around them says is true.  They have rejected the truth of Christ and believed in man’s “wisdom”.  They have a foundation that is as slippery as the sand along the shore and will crumble at the slightest storm.

Here’s the point I don’t want you to miss – the storms come regardless of which foundation you choose.  Jesus didn’t say, choose me and you’ll never see the storms of life. Rather He told us that if we choose to build our life on Him, we will have a foundation that is secure and we will be able to weather any storm because of Him.  However, for the person who has rejected Him as their foundation, when the storms come, the destruction will be great.  Nothing can stand firm on sand; it is ever shifting. When we trust our own wisdom instead of God’s wisdom, we don’t have a solid foundation.

Jesus has given us a choice. Every day we can choose to build our lives on Him, basing our decisions on the Word on God or we can build our lives on the ever changing ideals of our culture.  One offers security and stability, the other offers instability.  Let us be wise builders and daily choose Jesus for our foundation, for He is our Rock.

My hope is built on nothing less
Than Jesus’ blood and righteousness;
I dare not trust the sweetest frame,
But wholly lean on Jesus’ name.

Refrain:
On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand;
All other ground is sinking sand,
All other ground is sinking sand.

When darkness veils His lovely face,
I rest on His unchanging grace;
In every high and stormy gale,
My anchor holds within the veil.

His oath, His covenant, His blood
Support me in the whelming flood;
When all around my soul gives way,
He then is all my hope and stay.

When He shall come with trumpet sound,
Oh, may I then in Him be found;
Dressed in His righteousness alone,
Faultless to stand before the throne.

 

Would You Like a Reward?

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Prize

When you think of a reward, what comes to mind? Some of us will think of a monetary reward for finding something or someone. Some might think of a prize like a trophy. Some of us might think of a food treat, like a cookie or a piece of chocolate. No matter what you think of, a reward is something special. It’s something that you’ve earned, you worked hard and now you receive your reward.

Did you know that God Himself is a rewarder?  Take a look at this verse found in Hebrews:
And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.  Hebrews 11:6 (NIV)

This is one of my favorite verses in all of the Bible for two reasons. First, it tells us how we can please God (by placing our faith in Him).  And secondly, He rewards – gives His favor and blessings – to those who earnestly seek Him.  He doesn’t reward our results. He rewards our seeking and that’s the part that gets me.

Many of our motivations are performance based. We do what we do in order to achieve an outcome. We work hard on a task, we expect to be thanked, praised or at a minimum, acknowledged.  Our actions are based on a result. The task is done, now comes the “payoff” – it may be money, praise or thanks.

Not so with God. He rewards our seeking after Him.  He rewards our pursuit of Him.  He doesn’t wait for us to reach the goal. He rewards us as we are “in process”.  But He doesn’t have to.  He could wait, and give us our rewards when we get to Heaven. Scripture tells us there will be rewards given there but know this, there are rewards given here on earth as well.  God loves us so much that He doesn’t wait until we get to Heaven – He wants to bless us now, as we seek Him!  How wonderful is that?!

The thought of God, the Creator of all things, rewarding us simply for pursuing Him…… it is almost too good to be true! But it is true because Scripture doesn’t lie. We can trust that Scripture is always true, just like our God.

5 Ways to Be an Encourager

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Smiling-Child-Girl-Wallpaper

I know I wrote about encouragement last week, but really, can you have too much encouragement? I don’t think so!

Here’s a few things that I’ve learned on encouraging others:

1. Smile – This is first and easiest thing to do and sometimes it’s the only thing you can do. Studies show that smiling is contagious. It actually takes more effort to not smile than it does to return a smile. Smiling also reduces stress levels, slows down your heart rate and releases chemicals in your brain that boost your mood.  We don’t need to look any further than the book of Proverbs to see what God says about smiling:

“A joyful heart makes a face cheerful, but a sad heart produces a broken spirit.”  Proverbs 15:13 (HCSB)

“A joyful heart is good medicine, but a broken spirit dries up the bones.”   Proverbs 17:22

2.  Listen – Let’s face it, we just don’t listen like we used to.  In this day of all manner of electronic gadgetry, we often “listen” while checking email, texting or “googling” something.  We hear but we don’t listen. But when we actually focus on the person who is speaking to us, listening with full attention, it tells them that they are important.  The apostle James wrote this: (HCSB)

“My dearly loved brothers, understand this: Everyone must be quick to hear, slow to speak, and slow to anger,” James 1:19a (HCSB)

3.  Point them to God’s Word – If possible, give them a word of encouragement from scripture.  I say “if” because sometimes we only have a moment with someone and there isn’t time to pass scripture along.  But for a Christ-follower, scripture is the source of all wisdom, and that is the first place we turn to when we need wisdom on how to help.

“All Scripture is inspired by God and is profitable for teaching, for rebuking, for correcting, for training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.” 2 Timothy 3:16-17 (HCSB)

4.  Pray – This is where we can do the most good for someone.  When we intercede for someone in prayer, we bring the resources of heaven into a situation.  God is ever willing and able to answer our petitions – but we must bring them to Him before He can act.

“The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.” James 5:16b (NIV)

5.  Express love – The best way to encourage someone is to remind them that they are loved.  I know it sounds simplistic, but the gospel itself is simple – For God so loved, that He gave.  And that’s what we’re called to do – share His love.  Whether it’s with a smile, a listening ear, a verse or a prayer, we are called to give away the boundless love He has given to each of us.

“God’s love was revealed among us in this way: God sent His One and Only Son into the world so that we might live through Him.” 1 John 4:9 (HCSB)

 Hopefully these few tips will help you find your own way to be an encourager. Everyone needs a little encouraging, so go out there and share the love!