“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 it fell not…And every one 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 it fell: and great was the fall of it” (Matt. 7:24-27). Both heard the same words and both faced the same weather. One fell and one did not fall. Why? The house built upon sand, fell and great was the fall. Why? It could have been prevented. The home built upon a rock did not fall. Why? The rock was stronger than the storm. I feel that one was a house and the other a home.
I have lived in many houses, but I have had only one home. A house is built with hands, but a home is built with heart. A house is where you live, but a home is where you love. A house has moments, but a home has memories. A home is where love is shut-in and strife is shut-out. A home has four walls joined together with joy, tears, laughter, dreams, and hope. A home is a refuge from raging storms of fear, struggles, strife, disappointments, and discouragement. A home is rest from a day of stress. A home has special meal aromas, your bed, pillow, and chair. A home is where you share love with your mate, children, and grandchildren. Home is a place of births, deaths, events, and family gatherings for Christmas and Thanksgiving. Home is…husband and wife, mom and dad, brothers and sisters, children and grandchildren, grandfathers and grandmothers. Home is where you pray, weep, rejoice, and love together. Home is where you work things out during the storms because you made vows. You attack the problem, not the person. After the storm, you learn that good marriages are built upon problems that have been solved. You seek to stay sweethearts.
A home also faces storms but it does not fall. Why? It is built upon the rock of Christ, Scriptures, prayers, love and commitment. The Lord may not still your storms, but He can still you in the storms. Do you have a house or a home? Seek to make your house into a home. Make the days ahead the best you have ever known. There is a difference in a house and a home and it is true, “There is no place like home!”
