We will begin a Bible study that can help us understand how to take full responsibility for ourselves regardless of what others do or don’t do. We will use my book, Character Blocks, as our text so if you haven’t gotten your copy yet you can pick one up here: www.terrydonelson.com under “books”.
For those who have already gotten your copy and read the Introduction you know that for years I operated on an unhealthy emotional level. It was just natural for me to play the blame game when things went wrong especially in my marital relationships.
I, like a lot of people, grew up learning how to act and how to talk from those I was around such as family, friends, and neighbors. Never did I give it much thought about “WHY” I acted like I did or said things that I said…I just kind of reacted to what others did or said. I found, however, this behavior didn’t work to give me the kind of relationships I really desired.
Fortunately, about 30 years ago I was confronted by my pastor who told me I needed help. He offered to send me to a counselor where I eventually learned that I needed to get rid of some stinking thinking about what “love” actually looked or acted like.
Can you hear what I’m saying? Do you have the kind of relationships you desire? Would you say they are healthy or could you use some help?
Help is on the way!!!
This lesson comes from Chapter 1, Foundation Story, in my book. It is a true story about a rental house I use to own. After a particular tenant moved out I spent a lot of time and money getting the place ready to re-rent. It wasn’t until after I did what I thought were the necessary repairs and upgrades that I discovered the more serious problem down in the basement.
Whoever thinks to look below the surface? I had busied myself, for months, patching cracks in the ceiling and fixing doors and windows that didn’t open and shut properly. A lot of painting had to be done too, after replacing the kitchen and hallway floors.
Now, there was this crumbling foundation issue that not only forced me to pay attention but also to make a decision that required spending a lot more money and time to get it fixed. Had the situation been ignored I could have potentially lost the time and financial investments already made. And worse yet, somebody could have even gotten seriously injured or died without taking some action immediately. I just couldn’t let that happen.
Knowing I did not have the skills or tools to do the work myself I hired a pro that turned out to be pretty pricey. So for this financial investment the foundation got restored and at the same time I learned some valuable lessons including why it crumbled in the first place.
The scriptures say in I Corinthians 3:10-11, “According to the grace of God, since it was given to me as a skilled master builder, I placed a foundation, but another is building. And each must continually see how he is building. For no one is able to place another foundation other than the One being laid. Who is Y’shua Messiah.” (ONM)
In this lesson we will focus on the scripture portion: “I placed a foundation”.
In the Foundation Story the contractor told me what he found when removing the deteriorated building materials. He said the brick and mortar which made up the wall did not possess a load-bearing quality. He also went onto say that a footing had never been placed under that deteriorated wall. Those inadequate bricks were just sitting upon the shifting earth (sand).
Why is this Foundation Story important for us today? We all adopt information from our families, friends, and neighbors that consciously or unconsciously affect the way we think or act. Sometimes it just rubs off of them and other times it is taught intentionally. Either way, if Jesus isn’t put in place as our footing…if we have not placed a foundation …we will eventually sink or crumble.
Have you purposefully made Jesus Lord of your life? If not, put Him in place now. Just ask Him to forgive you for trying to build on sand and ask Him to be your solid rock which you can build upon.
Without having Jesus properly positioned in your life you cannot build a life that will withstand the storms that will surely come.
Maybe you already do have a proper footing…what are you building with? Are your building blocks load-bearing? What is a load-bearing building block? We will begin to examine that in the next lesson.
If you have already started to read my book take time to ponder the questions in the back of Chapter 1 before moving onto Chapter 2. Begin to understand how the Foundation Story relates to you personally.
Until next time…
Many blessings,
Dr. Terry