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Building Houses

             “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. But 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. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.” (Matthew 7:24-27)

 

            Because Jesus said this, I think sometimes we try to make today’s passage all about some spiritual or Christian reality. That leads me back to a idea that  pops up now and then. People have insisted that religion is somehow different – magical thinking, but the reality is that religion and philosophy are both just attempts to understand experienced reality and to provide principles that will allow us to cooperate with that reality instead of fighting against it.

            To put it in very simple and realistic terms, if you insist that 2+2=19,  you are building your house on sand and it is going to collapse around you. The closer you get to 2+2=4, the less messed up your life will be. It’s not just about trusting in Science and having your life collapse verses trusting in Jesus and weathering life’s storms. It is equally true of any reality.

            This is why the current notion is that we can determine what identity or reality we want to believe and expect others to support us in. I’ve experienced this. Years ago, I read Seven Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey. It’s a good book, but either my interpretation of Mr. Covey’s words, or his idea didn’t connect to reality. He suggested that we discern our mission statement based on what we wanted to be, or to do, or to have and how we wanted go about being, doing, or having. The problem, again put in rather extreme terms, is that if I want to be a Great White Shark, I’m in trouble. It doesn’t matter how much I want to be one. That doesn’t make it possible. It doesn’t matter how much others support me in my desire.

            As I tried to be,  to do, and to have things that weren’t me, I got frustrated because it didn’t work. Then one day I had an ah-ha moment, and realized that our mission statement had nothing to do with what we want. It has to do with who and what we  are, do, and have. To put it the way another author put it, it’s about being the best me that I can, doing the most good that I can with what I have available. In other words, it’s about keeping as close to reality as we can.


 

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