Previous Challenge Entry (Level 4 – Masters)
Topic: Wise and Foolish Builders (Matthew 7:24-27, Luke 6:47-49) (01/18/24)
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TITLE: Don’t Be Washed Away | Previous Challenge Entry
By Art Fahy
01/24/24 -
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As I grew older, I became a peacemaker. If an argument erupted in the house, I would always stand between the combatants. My goal was to bring peace between them. I failed more often than succeeded. It usually ended up with me getting a smack across the back of the head.
My father ruled with an iron hand. When he asked a question, he wanted an answer immediately. If I failed to answer quickly, he would belittle me. I learned to come up with a quick answer even if it was only half true. I was proud of myself because the belittling decreased. The foundation, of this false pride, was fear. I exhibited confidence on the outside, but I was a scared little boy inside.
One day I had this great fear from deep within me. It erupted, and it caused me to crumble. My pride didn’t peel away little by little; it exploded and brought me down. I felt helpless and broken. My life was crumbling.
I walked around for quite some time feeling empty inside. I didn’t know where to go or turn. Who can I speak with? I wandered aimlessly. All these years I relied on my own strength to get me through life. It wasn’t working.
A friend of mine let me use his cabin for a few days. It was springtime, and the buds were visible. The grass emerged from a thawed soil. It was a new life that was beginning and that’s what I was looking for. I finished dinner and crawled up on a recliner and read a magazine. The mountain air knocked me out because I woke about two in the morning and stumbled into the bedroom.
The next morning, I enjoyed my coffee on the porch gazing out into the woods. The air felt clean not touched by any pollution. Suddenly, the thought of God entered my mind. It was a while; since I had any thought of God. I was consumed with only myself. I thought about the four seasons and how each one had its own purpose. They were all in Divine Order.
Returning inside I searched my friend’s bookcase. There were books on history, finances and fiction. At the end of the middle shelf was a bible. I plucked it from the shelf and sat in the recliner. My friend asked me a couple of times to go to church with him, but I was always busy. My friend earmarked Proverbs 16:18, 4:23 and Isaiah 43:18,19. Luke 6:47-49 was earmarked and highlighted. There was a caption, “The Wise and Foolish Builders.” I read the passage, and Jesus’s words hit me between the eyes.
Jesus was speaking to a crowd. He told them if they came to him and listened to what He said and put His words into practice. They would be like a man building a house, who dug down deep and laid the foundation on a rock. The house would stand against a flood because it was well built. The one who hears my words and does not put them into practice is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. When the flood came, the house would collapse, and its destruction would be complete. My foundation was built on the earth. It would shake under almost any situation.
When I returned home, I started to attend church with my friend. Soon after that, I joined his Bible study and, surrounded myself with a group of men who loved Jesus. I was building my foundation on the Word of God. I didn’t shake or look over my shoulder like I used to do. I still experienced fear, but I knew where to turn, and who to give that fear too. Surrendering all to my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, I knew all would be well.
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