Matthew 7:24–27
Yesterday I wrote about photographs of the storm damage from the April 30, 2019 tornado that struck Haileyville, Oklahoma.
Last night, as I looked back through those pictures, one photograph in particular held my attention.
It showed a residence, much like an old shotgun house. Part of the roof framing had been pulled outward and was hanging beyond the back of the house. Roofing was torn open, insulation hung from the damaged corner, and the structure had been compromised.
Yet the house remained standing.
That picture brings a question close to home:
What have I built my life on?
In April 2004, I lost a job making nearly $36,000 a year through a series of events over which I had no control. After two months of searching, I accepted a minimum-wage job at Staples.
During that same period, my Mums—the woman who had helped raise me—was hospitalized. We weren’t sure she would survive.
Then, about two weeks after I started the new job, my wife stood in the doorway one Sunday evening and told me she wanted a divorce.
When I asked why, she said, “I don’t want to be married to you anymore.”
I asked her to clarify. Did she no longer want to be married, or did she no longer want to be married to me?
Her answer was the same.
It knocked the wind out of me. I felt as though I’d been hit in the stomach.
Within a few weeks, I moved into a small duplex. Money was tight. My marriage was uncertain. Someone I loved dearly was fighting for her life.
Most days, the routine was simple: get up, go to the hospital to check on Mums, go to work, go home.
My relationship with God was tenuous. I won’t pretend otherwise. But I began journaling, and Bible study became my friend.
The financial uncertainty remained. The questions about my marriage remained. Most days were a struggle.
But during that season, I remained faithful to my vows and faithful to God.
Jesus’ teaching about the two builders speaks into seasons like that:
“Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock.”
—Matthew 7:24 NKJV
Jesus described two builders. One built his house on rock; the other built on sand. Both houses faced rain, rising water, and beating winds. One stood. The other fell.
The difference was in what they had been built on.
Jesus used that picture to explain our response to His teaching. Hearing His words and putting them into practice is like building on rock. Hearing them without doing them is like building on sand.
A dependable income matters. Our health matters. Our relationships matter deeply. And when those things become uncertain, the pain is real. Trusting God doesn’t mean we won’t feel the blow.
But a paycheck, another person’s decisions, and our own ability to manage circumstances cannot provide an unshakable foundation.
Looking back at that small duplex, I remember how little I could control. I couldn’t make my wife choose our marriage. I couldn’t guarantee Mums’ recovery. I couldn’t make an employer offer me the income I needed.
But I still had choices about how I would live.
That’s where Jesus’ teaching becomes practical for all of us.
Will I tell the truth when honesty costs me something?
Will I forgive when I’d rather keep rehearsing the offense?
Will I accept correction when I want to defend myself?
Will I obey what He has shown me while I’m still afraid?
These are ordinary decisions through which we put His words into practice. We make them at work, at home, in difficult conversations, and in quiet moments when no one else sees.
Looking at that photograph again, I see something that connects with my own experience. The displaced roof framing, torn roofing, and exposed corner show how much damage the house had sustained.
Yet the house remained standing.
I know something about feeling as though the supports have been pulled out of your life. A dependable income disappears. A loved one may not survive. A marriage you wanted to preserve becomes uncertain.
You feel the damage. You struggle to find your footing. Some days, you wonder how much more you can take.
That house brings me back to what Jesus taught: the foundation matters. What we build our lives on matters.
The house built on rock still endured the storm. Following Jesus doesn’t mean we won’t experience grief, fear, or days when getting up takes everything we have.
But His words give us something dependable to build on. As we put them into practice, we learn to remain faithful even when circumstances are beyond our control.
That brings the question back to me. Knowing the right Scriptures matters. So does what I do with them.
What is one thing Jesus has already shown me that I need to put into practice?
That’s a place to begin building today.
