Clinging to The Rock

This has been a week of many possible topics: geese searching for food under the snow; Ash Wednesday; Payton broke her leg; health struggles; problems; heartache; distractions... so how do I choose?

God directed me to a passage where Jesus is teaching about the wise man who built his house on a rock. It reminded me of our house search two years ago. We were leaving the country acreage and wanted to be closer to our grandchildren. We kept Zillow busy for months as we searched the suburbs of Des Moines. We made lists of houses we wanted to view in person and found a realtor willing to help us. One of John's criterion was finding a house with no chance of flooding. We saw more than one house that was unacceptable because there was a nearby creek and nothing to stop it from filling the lower level through a walk-out basement door in the event of a 100-year flood. John is a wise man.

Spring flood on our acreage

""Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not all, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against the house, and it fell with a great crash." When Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were amazed at his teaching, because he taught as one who had authority, and not as their teachers of the law,"" (Matthew 7:24-29 NIV).

I am so thankful to have built my faith house on a Rock, not on shifting sand. So many times, Jesus has helped us weather storms in the past, and He will be there for the future storms, too. I wish the storms would miss us, but life's challenges are what make us strong like a rock. The Word is what makes us strong...able to withstand the floods of pain, sorrow, depression, grief and illness. I'm just hanging on with all my strength.

Clinging to The Rock doesn't mean I won't get my feet wet.

May God give you strength and clinging power for all that is in your path today. Amen.