1

Once upon a time there was this kid who was sitting in his living room with his parents watching TV and noticed a big beautiful house on the cliffs over looking the ocean. The little boy looked at it and said “some day I will build my own house on a cliff over looking the ocean.”

For years that was what began to drive the kids aspirations. In High School he started to do some research to see what kind of job could make enough money to be able to fulfill that dream. So he decided that he wanted to become a doctor. He worked hard in school and did really well. In fact he graduated on top of his class in a very prestigious university. This opened up the door for some amazing job opportunities.

Still on the guys mind was that big house on the cliffs over looking the ocean. That was his drive, his desire and everything was based around making money to someday sleep in that house with a billion dollar view. After 5 years in the medical field, he started to make a lot of money and instead of spending it on partying, fancy cars, or any other type of luxury, he started to put it in the bank where he would use it for his house.

As he was saving, he was also doing research on which piece of land he would purchase and build on. He had found the perfect place and made the purchase. His dream had began and everything that he had ever wanted was put into this house. Everything was going so well, great weather and when they were out building everything went just as planned. Within 3 years the house had been finished and it was absolutely beautiful. Everything that this guy ever wanted in life was sitting on a hill of a cliff over looking one of the most beautiful places in the world. Every last dollar that he had, was invested into a dream that started as a boy. He had poured his whole life into this and finally was able to see it come true.

About a year later there was a change in weather and it started to rain. The water droplets went on for months hitting the side of the hill slowly eating away at the cliff. Each year got worse during the stormy season and over time the foundation that the house was built on started to be wiped away. One year the storm hit so hard that a mud slide from the hill caused the house to drop into the ocean.

The man luckily wasn’t in the house because he was warned about the danger of cliff, but when he saw on the news that his was house sitting in the ocean, he was devastated. He had worked his whole life for this dream and in second, his everything was destroyed. He didn’t know what to do with himself because his drive and motivations were no longer a reality. His every waking hour had been invested in building this house and when the foundations were wiped away by the storm, he had nothing to stand on and nothing to live for.

I often wondered why people commit suicide, even when I was younger I often had thoughts of doing it myself, and even tried a few times. Didn’t succeed of course because I am here writing this. But last night as I was teaching on Matthew 7:24-27, scriptures answered this question for me. It is because when your foundation and your everything is based on things of this world and when the rain, flood, and wind comes to push you over, you have nothing to stand on when it will wipe away your hearts investment.

When you have a strong foundation in Christ and everything revolves around God, then no matter what the storms bring, you will never be shattered; maybe shaken but never shattered. Where we invest our heart, mind and soul reveals our true foundations and the storm just wipes away the sand showing the depths of our life.

Rain, floods, and wind will eventually hit everybody but the question is where do you build your house? Is it on a rock (Christ) or on sand (things of this world). Only one will last for eternity. Only one will not be shattered because a strong foundation in Jesus is an unbreakable life.