3 – Lay That Foundation
By ANNA COYNE
“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.” (Matthew 7:24-25)
My husband and I celebrated our first wedding anniversary by backpacking across Europe together. While we were in Venice, Italy we stopped in the Basilica di San Marco, a breathtaking Byzantine church that has been standing in St. Mark’s square since the 9th century A.D. As we walked through that ancient and mammoth church I couldn’t help but marvel at what careful planning and craftsmanship must have gone into a building that has stood for over a millennium, and how strong its foundation must be. It reminded me of the parable Jesus told of the man who built his house on the rock, “The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock.” (Matthew 7:25, ESV)
Six years have passed since the day my husband and I stood in San Marco’s, and the storms of life have beaten against our marriage. We have struggled with infertility, and lost one baby to miscarriage. We spent our first week as parents staring at our newborn son through the windows of his incubator as he went through and recovered from major surgery. We’ve learned how to invest in our marriage while juggling the demands of work, graduate school, and raising young children.
All of these events are things that could have ripped our marriage apart, but because our marriage is founded on Christ, they became moments to lean on Him. It was in times of helplessness and weakness that grace was poured out on us; that’s when our marriage became strong. “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” (2 Corinthians 12:9, ESV)
Dear friends, marriages are not tested in sunny weather. The parable does not say the storms might come. It says they came, and they beat upon that house. In order for our marriages to stand the test of time they need to be built on a foundation that is strong and sure.
So how do you make Christ the foundation of your marriage? The answer to that question is found at the very beginning of the parable. “Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them…” (Matthew 7:24, emphasis added). Read the word, pray together, give of yourself in love, even as Jesus loved us and gave Himself for us.
TALK ABOUT IT
What examples of marriages with solid foundations do you know personally? How do you hear the Word of God in your marriage: Do you attend church regularly together? Do you read scripture in your home with your spouse, and children if you have them?
How are you putting that Word into action?
Anna Coyne is a St. Paul native and full time wife and mom. She splits her time evenly between teaching piano lessons, knitting, tripping over wooden train sets, and making too many trips to Trader Joe’s.
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