“Anyone who listens to my teaching and follows it is wise, like a person who builds a house on solid rock. Though the rain comes in torrents and the floodwaters rise and the winds beat against that house, it won’t collapse because it is built on bedrock.” (Matthew.7:24-25)
The scripture above refers to a pretty famous parable that Jesus used to get an important point across. It features two characters, one named A Wise builder (because he built on solid rock) and the other called A Foolish Builder (who built on sand). What is often lost on many readers is that no matter how the two characters built, they both faced the same storm. Building well doesn’t mean you are exempt from trials, it does mean you will be able to face and overcome them better.
Another famous man in the bible is named Noah and he gets a lot of airplay in Genesis 6 – 9. The message version comments on Noah’s life in one line in Hebrews.11:7 saying, “By faith, Noah built a ship in the middle of dry land. He was warned about something he couldn’t see, and acted on what he was told.” I love how Noah’s building is linked to faith and building into a future that he couldn’t see! This is what we are called to do. No, not build a giant floating boat filled with animals, but making sure that we are building, investing and sowing into not just our future, but the generation ahead of us.
I love the story that we have at Life Changers where in 2004, a group of +-70 people raised funds by selling jewellery, cakes, shares and spare cars to invest into a building project which saw our present day Tableview campus being erected. All they saw at the time was an empty field, but by faith they leveraged their resources for a bigger future for themselves and for many others yet to come to faith. We can build into our futures not only in physical building projects, but by choosing to invest our time, our talents and our treasures into something that is bigger than us and that which has eternal value. Mom’s, don’t grow weary about all that you pour into your children Instead by faith see it as your building project. Similarly, if you have a morning or evening free, why not invest in a youth or kids programme? If you have a gift or skill of some sort, ask how you can put it to work in building a future. Take your money and determine in your heart that it won’t just be used to service today’s desires, but rather invest it into Kingdom agendas.
Finally, often I read the bible and think to myself that I’m not too sure what I got out of it on that specific occasion. But I’ve lately realized that the bible is less an ATM (where you make withdrawals) and more a bank where I can make deposits and invest in my future. By faith I read the bible and in turn invest and build into a future I am yet to see.
Make big decisions today and let’s get building!
