What do you do when life gets tough? Do you retreat to bed, declaring it a “no good, very bad day,” hoping tomorrow will be better? If so, we might never leave our beds. Daily, we encounter trouble, hardship, heartache, and suffering, even amidst blessings. The news constantly reminds us of the world’s unending problems.

How do we respond? We cannot perpetually hide, waiting for an easy life. The storms inevitably come, and we often live with a sense of impending trouble, even when things are good.

Jesus addresses this in Matthew 7, at the conclusion of the Sermon on the Mount. He illustrates: “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, the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”

The “rock” signifies putting Jesus’s words into practice. Hearing alone is insufficient; we must hear and do. The storms will come, and our foundation determines whether we withstand them.

While some emphasize “hearing” due to grace, Jesus stresses “hear and do.” It’s a dual imperative. We must hear to act, building our lives on the rock.

How do we embody Jesus’s teachings? Many hear, but few practice. We recite, “Love your neighbor,” “Love your enemy,” “Do not judge,” but how do we live them?

Consider athletes like Wayne Gretzky and Michael Jordan. They prioritized practice over games. Practice is where they honed their skills, ensuring their continued excellence. Most athletes practice to play; the greats play to practice.

This principle applies to our faith. Practice prepares us for life’s storms. Faith doesn’t eliminate pain, but it guides us through it. The storms, though intermittent, test our preparation.

Many abandon their faith during hardship, questioning God’s allowance of suffering. Yet, this is the very moment our faith is tested. Without practice, our faith falters, like an athlete whose fundamentals collapse under pressure.

We must cultivate a love for practicing our faith. It’s not merely intellectual assent; it’s active engagement. We’ve been misled to believe following Jesus guarantees a trouble-free life. But following Jesus is a challenging journey, a step into the arena. Yet, His yoke is easy through practiced faith.

We build our faith on the rock through consistent practice. Over the coming weeks, we will explore practical ways to do this: prayer, Scripture study, service, community, and fasting. These are not means to earn salvation, but expressions of our salvation, preparing us for life’s storms.

These practices fortify us for the inevitable hardships—heartache, pain, and the impact of sin in a broken world. Sin is not just individual wrongdoing; it’s navigating a fallen reality. We face car troubles, illness, and financial strain—storms we all encounter.

Are we prepared? Are we building our faith on the rock of hearing and doing Jesus’s teachings? Practice, with its repetition and drills, is essential. For the next six weeks, we will focus on these foundational practices.

Prayer:

Heavenly Father, thank You for a faith that prepares us for life’s storms. Help us to love practice more than performance, so our faith stands firm. In Jesus’s name, Amen.

The original sermon: