Foundations

In my years growing up on the coast of Southern California, I saw some incredible storms hit the shoreline. Of course, being a recreational surfer, impending storms were actually something my friends and I excitedly anticipated. Storms meant "Surf's up" and we often grabbed our boards and hit the beach to take advantage of the bigger waves.

In really BIG storms, there always seemed to be a point at which the storm overcame my ability to handle the biggest waves. It was then that I'd humbly pack up my board and simply watched the storm do it's thing. There were a few storms that still stand out in my memory. The sound of huge waves hitting the shore is something you simply don't forget.

The devastation the ocean can bring to the shoreline is breathtaking. I've seen things along the coast in serious storms that I definitely don't see in North Texas (unless it is the work of a tornado). Multi-million dollar homes get sucked right out into the sea in a matter of minutes. Homes that were "engineered" to withstand the forces of nature fold up like a house of cards.

Though Jesus didn't surf Southern California (though I think he was cool like that), being the creative force behind all creation, he knows a thing or two about storms and the damage they inflict on structures. He even used that reality as an example in teaching his followers. He said, "Everyone who hears my words and obeys them is like a wise man who built his house on rock. It rained hard, the floods came, and the winds blew and hit that house. But it did not fall, because it was built on rock." (Matthew 7:24-29)

Storms in life come and go, but the thing that allows us to stand through them is what our life is built upon. Notice Jesus said, "everyone who hears and obeys." I've heard a ton of Jesus' teaching, but I've got to be honest...I haven't always obeyed them. And I've found that obeying...really makes a storm-sized difference in how things go in my life.

When I choose to consciously not follow Jesus' teaching, it is like I'm consciously weakening my foundation. When the big storms come (and it has just started raining outside as I write this)...I have to wonder which "house" I'll be? The one washed out to sea or the one standing to see another beautiful day on the coast?

Join us at The Point, this Sunday night March 22, 5:00 in downtown Plano for healthy food, live music, loving friendship and a discussion of the best foundation to build your life on.

Slipping and Sliding

I can only imagine the rolling of eyes and snide whispers coming from my friends and relatives living in the northeastern United States on days when Dallas gets an "arctic blast." We've had a couple this winter and this morning, my family and I are "trapped" (insert laugh here) indoors behind 4" of snow and ice. Meanwhile, people I know in places like New Hampshire are STILL digging out from record FEET of snow that fell a week or two ago and their lives go on with business as usual. Relativity is definitely in play here!

Truth told, the metro Dallas/Fort Worth area (and most of north Texas for that matter) simply isn't equipped for frozen weather. Plows and blowers are as uncommon here as a canoe in a parking lot at AT&T Stadium (a.k.a. "Jerryland" -- where the Cowboys play). Places like Chicago can deal with FEET of snow and scarcely miss a beat, but only a few inches of the white stuff grind my town to a halt. It really is a bit comical when you think about it.

So this morning's coffee time was spent watching local new reports of 18-wheel big rigs trying to navigate the Mix Master and the High Five highway interchanges. It  sobers me that vehicles so impressively built for torque with hundreds of horsepower can be brought to a slipping and sliding mess by less than an inch of ice. Trucks that normally haul tons of goods clear across the country can't move a single inch in this stuff! They stand still until the conditions change (or the de-icing truck comes to the rescue). What is normally easy...is impossible...without help.

Something Jesus taught his followers often hits me like a 1/2" of ice on a Dallas road... Jesus said, "Love your enemies"...and there I go...slipping and sliding...struggling to get traction to keep moving forward in love for all people. "Love your... WHAT?" Seriously? That seems impossible when I hear it because I even have trouble loving the people I know love me! And I'm supposed to also love the people I know don't love me? C'mon...really? But, Jesus didn't leave us without help...traction is available! We just need to discover it.

This Sunday night at The Point...there will be conversation and music about this challenging teaching. Coming together in community... maybe you and I can take a step forward and get some traction in loving the way Jesus loves. See you Sunday evening at 5:00 in downtown Plano.