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Are there rains, floods and winds beating upon the house of your life? Does it feel as if that house could collapse at any moment? Does it seem the storms will never end? Jesus said that there is a way to stop those storms from even rattling the windows.

At one time or another, we have all experienced storms in our lives. Perhaps you are in the middle of one right now. Maybe it's a storm of sickness or depression. It could be a financial situation or some sort of strife in a relationship. Storms can take on a lot of different forms but they all share a common tendency. They tend to inhibit or stop your progress toward the wonderful plan God has for your life.

The good news is, the Word of God plainly tells you how to breeze through every storm that comes your way. Jesus speaks directly of those storms in Matthew 7:
Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: and the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock.

And everyone that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: and the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it.
(Matt. 7:24-27)
This scripture points to two fundamental truths about life's storms.

First, storms come to everyone. This passage doesn't say, "if the rain comes," or "if the floods come." It plainly states, storms will come. When a storm comes in the form of adversity or trouble, many Christians tend to say, "Why me God? I'm doing my best to serve You. Why is this happening?"

The first thing you must know is this: That trouble isn't God punishing you or trying to teach you something. Trouble comes simply because we live in a world filled with tribulation. In John chapter 16, Jesus says so: "In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world." (John 16:33)

Your House Shall Stand
The second truth we discover in these verses is this: If you are a doer of the Word, the house of your life will not fall when a storm comes. The account of Jesus teaching on this subject in Luke 6:47-49 sheds even more light on this truth.

There the Word says the storm could not even shake the house. Jesus is saying that, as a doer of the Word, you can be assured that, not only will those storms not destroy you, they won't even shake you up!

Is There a Storm in Your Life?
If you are or have recently been shaken by a storm, you need to ask yourself, "Is there an area of my life in which I am not doing the Word?" Behind this question lies the fundamental biblical principle for living successfully. Notice that the basic issue isn't a lack of faith or knowledge. No, verse 24 said, "Whosoever heareth."

So, we must be talking about those who have heard. And since faith comes by hearing (Rom. 10:17), we can assume that some whose houses fell, did so in spite of the fact that they had faith. Look at verse 24 again to discover the key element. "Whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them..." Clearly, the key to weathering the storms of life unaffected is doing the Word.

It's Not Working, Pastor
When I counsel people who find themselves in the midst of a storm, I'll take them to what the Word of God says concerning their situation. Often the response that comes back is, I've done that Pastor and it's not working.

Frequently the reason for this turns out to be that they think they are doing the Word when, in reality they aren't. Say, for example, someone has a sick friend and decides to do, James 5:14-15. It says: "Is any sick among you? Let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord: And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up."

In a sincere desire to do what the Word says here, they call for the elders of the church, anoint the friend with oil and then pray a prayer that includes, Lord, if it be thy will, heal him.

Did that person do the Word? No. The passage in James said the prayer of faith would save the sick. There was no prayer of faith offered. The result is a person who truly believes they are a doer of the Word, but in reality are not.

Do the Word You've Heard
At this point I need to address those of you who might be saying to yourselves, "But Pastor, I don't know all of the Word yet. I've only been saved a short time. I haven't even read all of the Word, much less know it. How am I ever going to make it?"

Relax. You're not responsible for every truth and principle in the Word. You are responsible for the Word you've heard. Remember, verse 24 says, "Whosoever heareth..." Along the same lines 1 John 1:7 says, "If we walk in the light...the blood of Jesus cleanseth us from all sin." Obviously, you can't walk in the light you don't have or do the Word you haven't heard.

I must caution you here. Don't avoid hearing the Word in order to remain unaccountable for it. That's when Hosea 4:6 applies: "My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge."

Just know that if you are making an effort to grow in God, you don't need to be concerned about the Word you haven't yet heard.

The Storms You Can Avoid
As we've seen in the Word, storms are going to come to everyone. But some people experience storms unnecessarily.

Jonah is one example of someone who could have avoided a storm (not to mention three days in the belly of a fish), if he hadn't disobeyed God. Some storms come simply because of disobedience.

Please don't misunderstand God doesn't bring storms to punish you. But disobedience another way of saying a failure to do the Word will open you to a storm you might otherwise have barely even noticed. How do you get through a storm like that? The same way Jonah did. Repent! Your storm will then deposit you back up on the shore and you can go on with your life.

Conversely, other storms come precisely because you are being obedient and doing the will of God. When Jesus instructed the disciples to cross the sea of Galilee (Mark 4:35-41), they encountered a storm that nearly sank their ship.

You might as well face it. The enemy doesn't want you moving forward with God and he will try to hinder you if he can. How do you deal with this kind of storm? Jesus commanded it, "Peace. Be still." A command of faith will still a storm that has come because you are following God's instructions.

The Company You Keep
Thirdly, some storms come because of the people to whom you are unavoidably connected. For example, sometimes in a marriage, one spouse may be endeavoring to serve God while the other is in willful rebellion. The obedient partner may be in God's will and has no need to repent of anything. But because someone else's will is involved, a command of faith can't be used and therefore the storm is unavoidable.

The apostle Paul encountered a ferocious storm on his way to Rome. (Acts 27:9-44) He knew it was the Lord's will for him to make this trip but the owner of the ship wouldn't listen to Paul when he warned him not to leave Crete. It wasn't God's will for Paul to be shipwrecked but Paul, being a prisoner, couldn't choose to stay behind.

Built on a Rock
There is something else I want you to notice about Matthew 7:24-25. The wise man's house the one that did not fall was built on a rock. What is this rock?

If you check a concordance, you'll see that the word translated rock in that passage is the same Greek word used in Matthew 16:18 where Jesus tells His disciples that He will build His Church upon a "rock."

Jesus revealed the nature of that rock in the previous verse. He told Simon Peter that he was blessed in that he had received supernatural revelation that Jesus was the Christ the Anointed One and His Anointing. That upon which the Church would be built was the "rock" of revelation that Jesus had brought the anointing or the power of God to humanity.

In other words, Jesus was saying, If you do My words, you are building your house upon the revelation that the power of God is available through Me to carry you smoothly through the storms of life.

In Ephesians 1:19 Paul prayed that the church at Ephesus would understand the greatness of the power which is available to those who believe. This power is available through faith but the key to releasing it is doing the Word.

That's why the Bible says faith without works is dead. The power of God that, by faith, is available to you to get you through the storm will not work on your behalf until you become a doer of the Word. It's as simple as that.

Look in the Mirror
Smooth sailing through the inevitable storms of life is not the only benefit of being a doer of the Word. It will keep you out of deception as well.

We see this truth in James 1:22-24 which encourages us to: "Be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was."

You see, the Bible is like a mirror. You really don't know who you are in Christ until you see it in the Word. In it, you'll see that you are healed, delivered, prosperous, and set free. However, if you hear it on Sunday but don't do it on Monday, you'll soon forget who you are in Christ. You won't remember that you are healed and you'll only deal with the storm of sickness in the natural realm, forgetting that God's power is available to heal you.

Overtaken by Blessings
Are you blessed in all that you do? If not, that is a good indication you should ask the Lord to show you where you are failing to do the Word.

Deuteronomy 28:1-14 gives us a vivid picture of all the blessings that shall come on thee, and overtake thee if thou "shalt diligently hearken unto the voice of the Lord thy God, to observe and to do all His commandments."

There's that word do again! Doing the Word of God will cause all of the blessings of God to literally chase you down and jump all over you. That's an exciting way to live and I encourage you to stir up your faith in that promise by looking those verses up and reading them for yourself.

No Man Shall Be Able to Stand Before Thee
Let's take another look at this principle in the first chapter of Joshua. There God is instructing Joshua to take the children of Israel into the Promised Land; a place Joshua knew to be full of hostile peoples. God addresses this in verse five when He tells him:

There shall not any man be able to stand before thee all the days of thy life - I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.

Dear friend, grab hold of this. There is no one or no force on this earth that can keep you from realizing God's plan for your life. Nothing can keep you out of your promised land. No man can stand before you all the days of your life!

Now allow verse seven to speak straight to your heart.

"Only be thou strong and very courageous, that thou mayest observe to do according to all the law (the Word)...that thou mayest prosper withersoever thou goest."

It will take strength and courage; it will take a fighting spirit to continue doing the Word of God. But if you do, you will prosper in all that you do.

Accept the Responsibility
While the scriptures I've shared with you can leave no doubt that doing the Word will empower you to breeze through the storms of life and experience the thrill of being chased down by God's blessings, there is an attitude I see all too often that will prevent you from fully realizing this marvelous truth.

You must guard against the human tendency to shift responsibility for your circumstances to others.

Let me encourage you not to blame your lack of blessings or success on your boss, your spouse, your color, your socioeconomic background or anything else. Accept full responsibility for the condition of your life. As we've seen in the Word, if you are being shaken by the storms of life, it's because somewhere you haven't been doing the Word.

We must humble ourselves enough to allow that truth into our hearts. When you do, you can honestly say to God, "Show me where I'm missing it and by the power of the Holy Spirit, I purpose to make whatever changes are necessary." That's when you will be in position to walk in blessings, prosperity, and success.

Copyright © Mac Hammond Ministries
All rights reserved. Used by permission.

Author Biography

Mac Hammond
Web site: Mac Hammond
 
Mac Hammond is the senior pastor of Living Word, a large and growing church in Brooklyn Park (a suburb of Minneapolis), Minnesota. He is the host of the Winner’s Minute, which is seen locally in the Minneapolis area on KMSP Channel 9 at 6:44 a.m. and 11:11 a.m. He is also the host of the Winner's Way broadcast and author of several internationally distributed books. Mac is broadly acclaimed for his ability to apply the principles of the Bible to practical situations and the challenges of daily living.
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