Monday Feb. 27, 2012 Where To Build!

"Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock."

Good Monday Morning, my dear brothers and sisters. It is a beautiful morning here at the Southern Location of the North Pole, and it is to go to 60 degrees here today. Move over, Bobbie, it is like Florida weather here in Central Pennsylvania. (Bobbie is a prayer warrior who resides in Florida.) Monday is the day we pray for our leaders, and regardless of our politics, we are to pray for our leaders. So please pray today for President Obama and his family, and for our Vice President and other leaders in Washington, and also pray for the leaders in your state house, and also the local leaders, and remember those who lead your schools. It is also the day we pray for our veterans, and as you pray for them, please pray for the 86 year old WW2 veteran who was beaten and robbed of his car at the gas pumps yesterday. Besides losing his car, he suffered a broken leg. Please pray for Stanley Bigham, a WW2 Veteran who had a bad fall and is in bad shape. Also pray for these veterans today:   Grant (Army), Sharon (Navy), Dolores (Air Force).  It is also the day we pray for our current military, and please, by all means include our troops in Afghanistan. It seems the Afghanistan people have turned on our military. On Mondays we also pray for our police, firefighters, and those who work so heard to keep us safe and healthy. Please remember your family doctor in your prayers.

Also please keep praying for Vicki and others on our long term prayer lists.

February 27, 2012 Where To Build: Matthew 7:24 - "Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock." 26 "But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. 27 The rains came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash." (NIV)

It was but another way to teach the people, teach the children, teach all people who would hear the message about building on the word of God. It was a few years back when Hope United Methodist Church on the Carlisle Pike in Mechanicsburg, Pa., was building a new addition to their Sunday School building. It was to be a worship building, to use that would be updated as the Old Salem Church was just that, very old, very nice, but no restrooms. That building still stands and is used for special services. Anyway, when the foundation of the new building was about to be poured, old pew Bibles were taken and placed into the corners of the foundation and the cement was poured over them. Trust me when I say the building was also built on solid rock in two ways.

The first rock was of course The Rock, our Lord Jesus.

Psalm 18:2 - The Lord is my ROCK, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my ROCK, in whom I take refuge. He is my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. (NIV)

So where have your built your house, on the rocks or on that sandy ground? Could it be. Did you ever notice that when the storms come, and the streams come up, some houses are washed away, or torn apart while others going through that same storm stand the time and while they might fill with mud they are left standing to go for another day? Did it have anything to do with who might live in the house, maybe, just maybe, some of those are not standing strong on the Lord, our Rock and our Salvation? But let's dig deeper into what Jesus is saying. Is he really talking about a real house, NO, He is just using that as an example for all people to understand.

Jesus is THE ROCK, and what He is telling us is we need to build our house, or ourselves and our families on Jesus and His teachings. My Mamma did a great job on this, I in turn did not do the best job. My Mamma would talk about Jesus, her parents would sit down each night and read the Bible and study it. Yes, it was before TV and all those TV games. Even when I was growing up we did not have TV till I was in Junior High School. So my mamma would talk to us about Jesus and read the Bible and she would make sure we were in Sunday school, and she even would drag me to Prayer Meetings on Wednesday evenings. Yes, my grandparents and my parents built their house, their children on The Solid Rock, our Lord Jesus.

When we build our house on solid rock, can things still go wrong? They sure can, for Satan will look and look for that one place where he can get into that house. A weak piece of wood in the structure, a loose brick, or a hole where a "rat" could get in. I just called Satan a rat. What does this mean, a lapse when we sort of don't stand on The Rock, when we let down our guard, walk away from Jesus for just a few minutes or a day maybe. We need to start each day with the Lord, we need to walk each step with Him, we need to stand with Him daily in all things, and when we lay down our weary heads at night we need Him to watch over us. When we stand with Jesus 24/7 and we teach others, not just our family, but all others this, then and only then will we be building OUR HOUSE ON THE SOLID ROCK... And we add to that... AMEN.

Dear Father in Heaven, Dear Jesus, our Solid Rock, protect us this day from the storms of life, block out the wind and the rain and keep our feet standing on the sure foundation. Lord, look over our prayer requests and honor them according to Your will and help us to honor You by abiding by Your will. In Jesus' name, I pray. Amen.

Now go forth and share your blessings. Love ya, Pastor Dan.