When the Storms Hit, What Are You Standing On?
“Everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock.”
– Matthew 7:24
The storms are coming. There is a reason Jesus ends His Sermon on the Mount with a warning about storms. Because they’re coming. Not maybe. Not if. When. And when the storms come, we don’t get to choose the weather—but we do get to choose where we build.
For some of us, the storms have already come—illness, uncertainty, grief, anxiety, financial hardship, fractured relationships. Maybe you’re reading this from the middle of one now, asking, “How much more can I take?”
Jesus doesn’t promise to calm every storm right away. But He does promise that if our lives are built on His Word, we won’t be swept away. In Matthew 7:24–27, Jesus contrasts two builders. Both build houses. Both experience storms. Only one house stands.
What was the difference? The foundation. Jesus says the wise builder hears His words and puts them into practice. That builder is like someone building on bedrock—solid, steady, and tested. But the foolish builder hears the same words and ignores them. The result? Collapse. Not because of the house—but because of the sand it sat on.
Here’s the hard truth: storms don’t create our foundation—they reveal it.
To be anchored in God’s Word means more than reading a verse here and there when we’re in crisis. It means rooting our identity, our choices, and our outlook in what God says— even when it’s hard, even when it goes against every thing society tells us, even when it challenges us.
It’s showing up to the Word daily, not just for information, but for transformation.
It’s asking, “Lord, what do You want to say to me today?” and actually listening.
It’s choosing to forgive and let go because Jesus said so. It’s choosing to hope because His promises are true. It’s choosing to obey even when we don’t fully understand.
Jesus says it’s not enough to just hear His Word—we must live it. Hearing the truth doesn’t anchor us—doing it does. Think of it like this: knowing there’s an anchor on the boat doesn’t help if you never throw it overboard. We’re not just called to believe the Word—we’re called to build on it.
Your Anchor Challenge This Week
Choose a verse and practice it on purpose.
Is God inviting you to forgive?
To slow down?
To trust Him financially?
To step away from comparison?
Let the Word go from page to practice.
Spend five quiet minutes reading and praying through Matthew 7:24–27.
Ask: Lord, where am I building on sand? Where are You calling me to dig deeper into the Rock?
Final Thought
The storms will come—life doesn’t offer a way around that. But if your life is anchored in the unchanging truth of God’s Word, you will not be moved.
This week, don’t just hear the Word.
Build on it. Stand on it. Live it.
Because Jesus—the Rock—is worthy of your trust.
Anchor in.