Bolted Down

On March 1st, the National Weather Service announced a strong wind advisory for Northern Virginia and Maryland.  The blustery wind was about 30-40 mph; however, some gusts reportedly reached  70 mph.  With school canceled due to power outages and blocked bus paths, we drove to the farm to see what the wind had blown our way or away.

Upon arrival, the front porch swing held strong but seemed a little confused as it continued to flip and flop with each gale!

Cows frolicked in the fields, breaking out of their winter slump.

Fortunately and unfortunately, nothing had blown away and nothing had blow our way.

Wind.

 You can’t take a photo of it, we can’t see it, it is undoubtedly a force we reconcile with. We see the results of its path. We hear the moan of it’s voice and we feel the power of its touch as it whips around us.

While all this is happening, in the blustery moment, do we ponder the foundation?

A few weeks ago we laid the concrete for this carport. We took the time to level, and allow the ground to settle.  We waited for the moist concrete to dry,  and the foundation to become immovable.  Our foundation was secure.  More than it had ever been in the past.  Unfortunately, we did not secure the building to the foundation. It was not bolted.

“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.” Luke 6:49

Many tend to build a solid foundation, just as we have done to this carport/shed.  The ground is firmly laid in Biblical knowledge, scripture memorization, and even prayers thrown up in a desperate moment.

As followers of Christ, we all know our spiritual foundation is our vital support on earth and in eternity.  We tend to securely stack our cinder blocks of friends, fitness, food, finances, and even fellowship.   Sadly,  what we know is different than who we are. Knowledge does not always reflect the true heart.

Often, there seems to be a disconnect.  An open gap waiting for the wind to blow the entire building off course.  Do you see that gap?  It started off as a fine crack, but look at what it is today.   Have you ever felt this disconnect? What is missing to fill that gap?  Anyone can build a house, some can build a foundation.  But what good is one not attached to the other?

What is it that securely bolts us to the foundation we have built?  Faith.  A true honest faith that comes not only from hearing the Word of God but experiencing it without doubt.  Faith is what we hope for.  It is the confidence in what is unseen.  We have faith in the wind,  that same unseen wind we see, hear and feel.  If we have faith in that unseen wind, why then does our faith in God sometimes waver?   Bolt and anchor yourself securely in the faith of God and in his Son, Jesus Christ.  When the wind picks up your house, will your foundation rise?  Are your bolts of faith strong enough to bind it all together?

Is your faith rusted solid in place?

God.  You can’t take a photo of him, we can’t see him, he is undoubtedly a force we reconcile with. We see the results of his path. We hear the moan of his voice and we feel the power of his touch as he whips around us.

Faith, the bolts that hold us together.