Storm Survivor

The very first month that I moved to Houston a hurricane was forecast to hit the city.  Growing up in Arkansas had prepared me to survive tornadoes.  We go to the room that is the closest to the center of the house.  We run to our bathrooms and get in the tubs.  But I had no experience with a hurricane.  A completely different storm that I was not prepared to weather.  In that instance, I was able to return to safety.  Well, at least safety as I knew it.  I drove to Arkansas and watched others in Houston ride out the storm.  Usually, we have no clue when personal storms in life are on the horizon.  Our sunny day becomes inexplicably cloudy.  We do not have time to run and hide.  Sunday’s sermon gave us some practical ways to survive life’s storms.

In Matthew 7:24-29, Jesus is at the close of His famous Sermon on the Mount.  The closing describes a parable of two men who are building houses.  One builds a house on sand and the other builds a house on rock.  When building is finished, after they have settled in their homes and become comfortable, a storm comes.  Not just any storm.  The rains pour from the sky.  The wind blows fiercely.  Floods come.  The house built on rock survives the storm while the house built on sands falls.  Not just any fall.  A great fall.

Two men.  Two houses. One storm. Two different outcomes.  What made the man that built his house on rocks a storm survivor? Jesus explains the difference.

Storm survivors hear what Jesus says and then they DO what Jesus says.  As someone who has been in church all my life, I can tell you that my physical body has been present in the church building at times while my mind was somewhere else.  I don’t care how good the sermon was or the choir.  I have had days where I didn’t hear or try to hear what was going on.  But then there were days that I was fully engaged.  I would wave my hand or say “Amen” in agreement.  I heard it all.  Said “Yes, Lord, Yes!” and walked out of the church doors and walked right back into whatever I declared that I wouldn’t.  I heard what Jesus was saying, but I didn’t do what He told me.  I was setting myself up for failure.  I was not preparing for the storm.  Surviving storms requires obedience.  Before a cloud ever comes on the horizon, we have to be committed to listen to what Jesus says and obey His commands.

Storm survivors also don’t wait for the storm is approaching to get to work.  They build continually.  When the storm comes, they already have systems set in place.  Ya’ll one thing we know for sure is that storms are coming.  The easy days are not the days that we need to be relaxed.  Instead the good days are the days that we need to be reading the Word.  We need to be praying.  We need to be fasting.  The framework that will sustain us should already be established before the storm rears its ugly head.  Part of living our best life and blessed life is maintaining a committed relationship with God.  We need to cling to Him when things are going well.  This foundation will help our homes to stand when the winds and water beat against everything that we know to be true.

Storm survivors are also aware of team that helps them build their house.  We were not created to do life alone.  We exist in community.  No one just magically comes to be on their own.  But we must be mindful of the folks that are picking up hammers and nails to help construct who we are.  Every subcontractor that comes to the job site does not have the same motives and intentions.  They may be scarred by previous experiences and exert too much force on you as they try to hammer their point in.  Or they may tear down load bearing walls.  Load bearing walls are essential to the health and strength of a home.  They take on weight that enables the house to stand.  An inexperienced subcontractor can come in and take down a wall that causes everything in you to crumble.  While we need community, we can’t survive if we are not discerning of those that we allow in.

Storms are coming.  They are part of the human experience.  I’m prayerful that we are doing all that we can to prepare for them.  I was able to run away from a hurricane once, but I have weathered so many personal storms that I could not escape.  I sheltered in place and trusted that the Rock that I built my house upon would help me to survive the storm.  Build your homes on the Rock.  You will be glad you did.  #wepreach

Questions to assess storm preparedness:

• How much time do you devote to God daily?
• What does your time with God look like?
• What attitude do you have when you are spending time with God?
• Are you a good subcontractor to those in your life? Do you add to their lives in a positive way or are you responsible for chipping away at load bearing walls?
• Decide on one positive change that you will implement this week.