Consider Where You Build
I lived in Houston, TX for several years, and I really loved being in that area. However, one of the areas lesser qualities is the regular threat of flooding after significant rain. I recall a time when there were nearly ten inches in one night! One specific trait of the city has only added to the problem. Houston was largely built on a swamp. Yes, that’s right. A low-lying, water retaining, mosquito breeding swamp. This one fact has made flash flooding a perpetual problem in the city, and no matter how hard they try, they simply cannot seem to overcome this geographical plight. It has resulted in untold amounts of damage over the course of many, many decades.
In Matthew 7:24-27, Jesus paints a picture of two homes being built. One is built on a rock, while the other is built on the sand. A bit of research uncovers that sand, while not the best of soils, is not so bad that you cannot build a stable house on it. Why did the fool’s house collapse then? Some have suggested that the “sand” was the sandy surface found at the bottom of the region’s wadis (deep ravines that are typically dry…except in the rainy season when flash floods occur regularly). The “rock” would have been the higher ground at the top of the wadi, positioned above the flooding. People understood that you simply do not build a home in the bottom of a canyon. Doing so will bring about sure destruction of that home.
The application for us is quite evident. You are building a house of your own for your soul. The materials for this house are the beliefs and actions that you put to practice every single day. The quality of the life you build will be determined on whether or not you solidify them with the teachings of Jesus, or with something else. Build your life on Jesus and you will be above the floods when the waters race down the wadis of life. Build your life on something else and you will reap the consequences of that foolish decision. Your life will be like a house built in the bottom of a canyon…or a large city built on a swamp.