see also Matthew 7
v. 24 Therefore, whoso heareth these sayings of mine and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, who built his house upon a arock—
v. 25 And the arain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it bfell not, for it was founded upon a rock.
v. 26 And every one that heareth these sayings of mine and doeth them not shall be likened unto a afoolish man, who built his house upon the bsand—
v. 27 And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell, and great was the fall of it.
I have loved this scripture ever since I was old enough to know adversity. There is a comfort to it, knowing that if you hold fast to your Savior, you will be given the strength to withstand any storm that may pass through your life.
Well, the storms are raging, and I can testify that this scripture is true. My Savior strengthens me, He comforts me, He blesses me, He compensates me for blessings lost.
I wonder, what is it about doing the words of Christ that gives you that protection? What does He ask of us? Love God with all your heart, and love your neighbor as yourself. Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Judge not. Ask for good gifts. Serve others, "for inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me." (Matthew 25:40)
Can you not see the life you are building when you follow Him? A life filled with love and loving relationships. A life filled with people who care about you and will remember you in your time of greatest need. And even if people fail you, you still have a personal relationship with Christ that will carry you through your great difficulties.
The storms will come, the winds will blow. Nobody gets a free pass. Life is hard, and it was meant to be, because it is only in overcoming the obstacles and withstanding the storms of life that we learn and grow and become better people. But I know that when I hold fast to my Savior and His teachings, I can hear Him whisper, "Peace, be still," to my heart.
Shelli,
ReplyDeleteThe Lord allows the winds and storms so that we can remember to rely on Him. It is part of our refining process bringing us closer to complete submission of our will to Him. I am in the midst of studying the Isaiah chapters in the BOM and have come to understand that just like the Assyrians were the instrument in the Lord's hand to bring the children of Israel to a remembrance of their one true God, the winds and storms in our life are the same as the Assyrians. They are just tools in the Lord's hands, who knows exactly what it will take for us to become perfected.
I know that personal relationship with Jesus Christ is exactly the goal we should have, so that we can weather the storms now and ahead.
Great insights. Thanks.
Shelli,
ReplyDeleteThe Lord is my rock and my salvation! Praise be the name of the Lord!
Thank you for sharing. You are right. God will give us the strength we need. (Not necessarily the strength we want) They are two very different things at times, I've discovered!
God Bless and Keep You,
Elaine
Dog (or should I say Dawg, lol) -- Thank you for your comments. I know the storms have a purpose; otherwise, it would be really easy to feel picked on, instead of loved! I found a video message that goes along with your comments. It seems to be the message I'm supposed to learn today!
ReplyDeleteI'll be interested to hear more of your insights on Isaiah.
Elaine, I thought of you today while reading this. That's what I meant about how you deal with your chronic illness. I know that you are built upon His rock, and that is what gets you through this storm. Hugs!
ReplyDelete