Music Ministry

Posted June 20, 2008

Luke 6: 46-49 (NIV)
  46 "Why do you call me, 'Lord, Lord,' and do not do what I say? 47 I will show you what he is like who comes to me and hears my words and puts them into practice, 48 He is like a man building a house, who dug down deep and laid the foundation on rock. When the flood came, the torrent struck that house but could not shake it, because it was well built. 49 But 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. The moment the torrent struck that house, it collapsed and its destruction was complete."
    I read this passage while I was on the mission trip to Gulfport, and it really hit home, but in a different way. I have often read or heard this scripture and thought about its meaning. But, when you are in a place where the physical reality of the scripture is seen, it becomes even more alive. When I read this passage, I read it from The Message and it had a little bit different take.
Luke 6: 46-49 (the message)
"Why are you so polite with me, always saying 'yes sir,' and 'That's right, sir,' but never doing a thing I tell you? These words I speak to you are not mere additions to your life, homeowner improvements to your standard of living. They are foundation words, words to build a life on. "If you work the words into your life, you are like a smart carpenter who dug deep and laid the foundation of his house on bedrock. When the river bursts its banks and crashes against the house, nothing could shake it; it was built to last. But if you just use my words in Bible studies and don't work them into your life, you are like a dumb carpenter who built a house but skipped the foundation. When the swollen river comes crashing in, it collapses like a house of cards. It was a total loss."
     So think about this, we have all met Christians who knew the right words to say and who came to church every Sunday but then later drop off the face of the earth. You contact them, and they say, "Well, I have been through this and that, and I am not sure if this 'God thing' is for me, or I have lost faith in God." Wow, we are taken aback because they seemed to have had it all together. Well, I am sure it was like some of those houses in Pass Christian. They all looked like they were structurally sound and like nothing would rock them. Then the waves came, and so many of the houses were just gone. Only remnants of what used to be remained - just a cement slab or a set of stairs. The only ones left standing were the ones built to last. When the waves of life hit you, will you be standing strong because you have placed God's word in your heart as a foundation for your life, or will you be washed away because of a shaky foundation? When the real trouble comes will there be nothing left but remnants of what we portrayed to be in Christ? Are we giving God lip service or are we really building our lives on the foundation of His word? I would ask you to check your motives. Are you using God as a giant genie to get what you want out of Him, and then once He doesn't give you what you want, you turn your back on Him? Or, do you have faith to weather the storms of life by putting your trust and hope in Him?
God Bless, Lanny