Most of us have read about the wise man who built his house upon the rock and when the storms came the house stood firm, but then there was a foolish man who built his house on the sand. When the storms came the house collapsed…but in Haiti what can you say to those who build their homes under the rock or I should say with the rock holding the home down?
The story that the Lord gave was a parable. A parable is a simple story illustrating a moral or religious lesson. Was this parable about an actual house? No…it is about what we build our foundation on. Do we build it on things that will wash out to sea or do we build it on principles that are solid, strong and will not waver. For Haiti I see this Rock as their security, their fortress, their shelter, their umbrella and when they place their trust in JESUS ALONE…their answer.
The Life Application Study Bible notes say this about what the “house “represents. “Your house (which represents your life) will withstand the storms of life only if you do what is right instead of just talking about it. What you do cannot be separated from what you believe. Jesus is more concerned with our walk than our talk. He wants us to do right, not just say the right words. To build “on the rock” means to be a hearing, responding disciple, not a phony, superficial one. Practicing obedience becomes the solid foundation to weather the storms of life.” (Mathew 7:21,24)
This past Thurs. was the 2nd Anniversary to the tragic earthquake that shook this nation. Hundreds of thousands of people were killed by this horrific enemy. An enemy we have no control over and we cannot see. So I ask again…what can you say to those who build their homes under a rock or holding the home down? I ask this because I see in many of the fishing villages here they hold their very homes down by rocks. They build their homes next to the water where they can go out into the sea to find food for their villages. The storms come and boats and livestock have been taken by the sea and homes have been crumbled, but what remains…..the ROCK. Just as I remember Jan. 12…where I was, what I was doing, who I was with, how I responded, and the many days afterward this is the photo I have in my mind then and today. I see this not for just this day, but the days that follow. I picture the Lord with His outstretched arms holding this country tightly as it is being shaken by the enemy…He is their Fortress. I picture the Lord as an umbrella sheltering them from the storms that will follow and continues to follow…from hurricanes to cholera…from lack of healthy drinking water to no food…from political deception to unspoken slavery and abuse. He is their Shelter. I picture those who turn to the evils of voodoo to find solace and comfort only to find no answers or their words falling to deaf ears…Jesus is their Answer. He is the Rock that they can find their security in. Just as they see the rock on their home as security in holding their home together. They can sit under this Rock to learn the hope they can have by trusting in Him and Him alone. This is why I do what I do. To share the hope and security that I have found in Jesus Christ. He is the one I build my house upon and who I sit “under.”.
Who is your house built upon or “under”?
Filed under: Mission Haiti Journal
