After the past month, God has really been moving. Much has happened. It was a season of prayer and fasting at my church, wedding planning is continually underway, my jobs were busy and productive; a lot happened. In seasons of busyness, it can be easy for me to lose track of what’s important. I tend to focus on getting the details accomplished only to miss the things God has for me in the midst of the tasks. With the season of fasting, I cut out any non-worship music, and that helped me in more ways than make sense. I always listen to music. It helps me focus and I love new creative endeavors that artists take, but sometimes, it can become a distraction. Many times, I don’t enjoy the quiet moments, but over the fast, I realized that we have to quiet the noise around us, in order to let God, have a chance to speak.

This made me think about the parable that Jesus told about building your house on the rock. He says that everything in life is built on a foundation, the key is, what have you made your foundation? Matthew 7:24-25 says, “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.”

Everything we do, all we say, the thoughts, the reactions, the way we treat others; stems from a foundation. During the season of fasting, there was a lot going on, but each day, I chose to rest on God. There is no way that my life would be where it is today without God’s perfect path. Why then, should I be afraid of what’s coming up? Why does my anxiety go through the roof when I know God is working in all things? The reason is because my foundation is not on the rock, but the sand. I begin to operate out of my own strength and talents, rather than admitting that without Christ, I cannot accomplish the passions he has place in my life. I think many of us question whether God is there or is in our situations, but the truth is, we haven’t given him the chance to do a miracle in our lives. We rest on a failing foundation and miss the fact that God has prepared a place for us if we simply trust in his ways.

Foundation starts with trust.

So, what can we do to build a foundation on the rock? It starts with trust, a lot of trust. We don’t know what the future will hold and we don’t know how everything will come together, which is a hard thing for me to understand. What I have to realize is, if the creator of the universe designed every single detail, does he not care about me? All of us? He designed us and said it was good, he formed us. We need to refocus, to realize that there is a bigger picture. That’s not saying that you don’t matter, I’m actually saying that you do matter. Everyone matters. That’s why we have an opportunity to share the gospel and save the lost. You are so worth loving, and so is everyone around you. When you see a movie you like, or try a new food that’s delicious, you share it on Instagram and talk about it with the people around you. What if we realized that God’s love is better than the best thing? What if we treated it with the same passion and joy? What if we stopped being afraid and started being confident in our trust of the savior. The God who made you has a plan for you. It starts with trust.

Foundation is strengthened by embrace.

The beginning starts with getting out of the boat, but embrace allows us to walk on the water. I use the word “embrace” here because it paints a picture in my mind. An embrace makes me think of the time I met Danielle at the airport after she went away. We embraced and held each other tightly. The reason why I love that picture, is because that is what God wants to have with us. God wants us to embrace him, when we embrace another person, we aren’t thinking about the ways we messed up or the mistake we made years ago, we are zeroed in on one thing. James 4:8 says, “Come near to God and he will come near to you.” We need to make sure that we are drawing close to our embrace, because an embrace has two parties. When it comes to your foundation, I would rather embrace my savior and let him speak to me. I can’t do it alone. I am not that good, no one is. We need to trust and then embrace the arms of our savior.

This past month has been filled with many moving parts and much to be mindful of. It could be easy for it to consume me and discourage me in my weakness, but the truth is, each day I am choosing to build my foundation on the rock. I need to understand that my flesh is weak, but in my God, I stand tall. I need to place my full trust in him and embrace his presence every day. I am choosing to build my life on solid rock.

Choose the right foundation.

-Joshua Thomas