Hearing + Practicing = Wise

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. 25The 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. 26But 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. 27The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.” (Matthew 7) 

Thoughts: Both the wise builder and the foolish builder heard the words of Jesus.  The difference is that one believed them and acted and the other did not act (whether they believed them or not makes no difference).  In the West many say they believe but they are practical atheists- they do not stand up or act on their faith because it means very little to them.  We are called here to be wise and to prepare for our future.  Faith can help us through the floods of life.  Faith can also help us to stand in the end when everyone else is washed away.  

Prayer: Lord, help me to be wise and act on what I hear and believe.  

Listening to the Request to Knock

7“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 8For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.

9“Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone? 10Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? 11If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him! 12So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets. (Matthew 7:7-12)

Thoughts: Listen.  Listen to the Lord of all asking us to ask.  Listen to Him ask for us to seek.  Listen for His voice telling us to go ahead and knock at the door.  God is asking us just to ask.  God longs to give to us if we will but ask.  In our day of a lack of faith we do not ask because we are afraid God may tell us no.  We do not seek because we are afraid we will find.  We do not knock for we are afraid the door will remain shut in our face.  Yet it is only those who ask, seek, and knock that are answered.  God does not answer those who do not have faith enough to cry out.  He is asking us to ask.  He is seeking for someone to seek Him.  He is knocking on our souls so that we will knock on heaven's door.  Listen and respond to Him in real living faith. 

Prayer: Lord, I need more faith.  I have been hardened by life and by the "Nos" of life.   Help me to not be afraid to ask, seek, and find you.  

Listening to the judge

1“Do not judge, or you too will be judged. 2For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.

3“Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? 4How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? 5You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye. (Mt. 7)

Thoughts: As consumers, we think that we have the right to decide what we want and how we want it.  This trickles down even to our relationship with God.  We think we can pick which parts of God are right for us.  We become, in effect, the judge of God- whether He is good or not.  Truth is, just as reality rubs up against us, so God rubs up against us.  God is God and we are to listen to Him.  He is our judge and has every right to do so- as our designer- and especially as the One who came to rescue us.
    The warning here is to not judge another because we are answerable to God.  The other part is we tend to forget our own faults when we closely examine the faults of another.  We do tend to minimize our own weaknesses and maximize the weaknesses of others.  Sadly, such judgmentalism destroys relationships.  

Prayer: Lord, help me to be merciful and less judgmental.  Allow me to see my own issues and problems.  Keep me from being critical of others with no self-criticism.