Saturday February 20,2010 Day 20

Building a Foundation that Lasts
This chapter speaks to my heart in extra loud volumes!
I feel like I have had more changes and "earthquakes" in my life than most people would have if they lived lifetimes , but I have weathered through lifes storms and came out on the other side! I have lived through many losses. I have been robbed at gunpoint and left for dead, been homeless for a year with two children, and been in a abusive relationship for many years. But I have come out of it a stronger, more viable woman!
I think the only reason I have been sane at the end of these changes is because I know, who i know, whose child that I am !
I was drug to church when little whether you were sick , tired, had sports, it did not matter, you were to be at church, I often have told the kids, I was taught if you went out and partied till 3am you were still expected to get up at 9 am and go to church , it was just expected, no questions asked, but it gave me a sense of who I was and whom I belonged to .
I was made fun of in school for my way out of control hair and a speech impediment from a cleft palate, kids are cruel, but it somehow never affected my self confidence, as I knew at the end of the day , my God loved me unconditionally.
I think in this anything goes world , where are children are so boldly against the things of God, that , that kind of foundation is missing terribly.
An unshakable foundation is is the key to building a meaningful life,a lasting marriage, strong friendships, and successful businesses. Matthew 27:24-25 even tells about he man who builds his foundation on a rock.
I know at times in my life I have built my foundation on men, money,cars, and many things that would not last. And in the end , I have turned right back to my Saviour, the only thing that truly lasts!
You can't always predict when storms will come, but you can build your foundation on solid ground, that when the storms do come, and they will, your center will be strong enough to hold things together.
I know in 2000 our house burned, and we had lost everything .We had made more money in that year than ever before. Were we living "bad", no, but I certainly that year was not putting God first and foremost in my life. The fire happened twelve days after Christmas, and four months after adding on a room so that the oldest could have her own room. Losing a house and all your possesions is a very hurtful thing to go through. But i KNEW we would be okay. A friend of mine who was a fireman gave me a motel room for the night, and the first thingI did was get down on my knees at the end of the bed and thank God for my life and that we were all okay. My husband at the time was not saved and he was literally distraught. He did not have that solid foundation to pull from . I knew that I knew we would be okay. We would put one foot in front of the other and rebuild our lives.Unfortuantely for him, the loss was so huge, and our marriage of eighteeen years was not built on that solid foundation and ended in divorce the next year.
Did God cause that fire, I don't think so , but I do think He does sometimes knock us to our knees to show us whats more imporatant in life!
I describe it like this .I have always said no matter where my kids are what they are going through , I want my kids to always have God as their point of reference , to go to , and to seek advice, and weather any storm they may face! If you are committed to loving God and seeking a relationship with Him, he will hold you in His arms and never let you go!
What does you life revolove around right now? Who or what is at the center of your lifes wheel?
Describe the last time you have experienced the tremors of an earthquake in your life~your most recent trial.In what ways did it turn your life upside down? How are you different now and would you describe your relationship with God as stronger or weaker in the aftermath ?