“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: and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock.

“But everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand: and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it fell. And great was its fall.” – Mathew 7:24-27

The story is told of an elderly carpenter which was due to retire. He told his employer of his plans to leave the business and start a life of leisure with his wife and extended family. He would miss the money, but the time was right and he was ready to hang up his hammer.

His boss was disappointed as the carpenter had been a loyal and diligent worker for many years, so he was sad to see him go. He asked for one last favor, requesting that the carpenter could build one last house before retiring.

The tradesman agreed, but it was soon clear that his heart wasn’t in it. He took shortcuts, used inferior materials and put in a half-hearted effort. In the end the final product was well short of his usual standards, a disappointing way to end his career.

When the job was finished, the employer came to inspect the work.  After taking a look around, he handed the keys to the carpenter and said, “This is your house, it’s my gift to you.”

The carpenter was shocked and embarrassed. If only he had known, he would have made sure that everything was perfect.

If only he had known the consequences, he would have demanded excellence from himself.

You know friend, many approach their lives in exactly this same manner when it comes to their spiritual life as this carpenter. Each and every day, they spend countless hours building their lives with materials that will soon eventually rot and decay and upon foundations which will tumble and fall in the end.

They go about their business, working as only they see fit. Some with passion, some without caring. Some with excellence, some with low standards. Some with diligence, some without effort.

We are all in the process each and every day of either building our spiritual lives on the solid foundational faith in Jesus Christ or on something else.

Our pastor recently taught several messages based around “Building Your World through Faith” where he challenged us as believers to build our lives (our world) upon faith through speaking God’s Word over our lives, our families’ lives, our homes,  our jobs, our church, see the trend here – basically, every area of our life. My friend, until you do, your life will always be lacking and you will substitute the things and cares of this world, to which none will ever satisfy.

If you’re not happy with what you see in your world (your life), perhaps it’s a direct consequence of what you’ve been building over the years, materials you’ve been using and most important, the foundation upon which you’ve been building upon.

Invite God into your world (heart) and allow Him to guide you and show you how to build your life  into the best it can be – Build wisely!

Remain Blessed,