Dear Faith Family & Friends,

And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. (Matthew 8:26).

Have you ever disregarded what you know to be true and lived to regret it?  (At this point you may be experiencing the internal conflict of do I dare continue reading?  This isn’t going to end well.  Or, I can’t not continue.  I have to know the story!)

The little voice inside my head warned me that if I stepped on the ramps, I would fall.  So, of course, I stepped on the ramps!  And, yes, I fell! (insert sympathy here)  And, yes, stitches were applied to my head!  (insert more sympathy here) What did you think was going to happen?

Let me back up.  I was young (important disclaimer – being young means that I had less wisdom then and that I would never do anything like that today!).  It was the night before a Carowinds trip with friends.  I was headed into the garage to get something.  And, in order to get to what I wanted, I had to get to the other side of the ramps, the car ramps, the metal car ramps, on the floor of the garage.  Oh yea, I was wearing socks, no shoes.

That’s when the little voice inside my head warned me:  metal ramps (that means that they are sloped like little sliding-boards!) plus sock feet equals no Carowinds tomorrow!  What part of that could possibly be misunderstood?!  Yea, but nothing’s going to happen.  I mean what are the odds?  I can do this!  Have you ever had an argument with yourself?  It sounds better if I refer to it as working through the decision-making process.  You know, reasoning.  Yea, that’s a good word.

That brings me to Matthew 7:26.  Do we hear the Word of God and not do them?  Do we forget.  Do we carefully reinterpret (so as to “help” the Word of God line up with our lives rather than our lives to the Word of God).  Do we explain why the words don’t apply to us.  Do we strategically apply the words to someone else.  So, what have you heard this morning?  This week?

This morning I read: I will tell of Your Name to my brothers (Psalm 22:22).  So, who will I tell?  Will I listen and do?  But be doers of the Word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. (James 1:22).

Go ahead and read the rest of the paragraph in Matthew 7.  What happens when we ignore God’s Word?  Well, it looks like sock feet on metal ramps!  Pray for the grace and strength to be hearers and doers of God’s Word.  Then, do it.  Love one another.  Accept one another. Serve one another.  Carry each other’s burdens.  Forgive one another.  Bear with each other.  Encourage each other.  Build each other up.  Spur one another on toward love and good deeds. 

By His grace, practicing what He preached,
Pastor Karl