A solid foundation is essential for a structurally sound house. Everyone would agree to this in theory—Sue Ann and I faced this up close and personal! The first home we purchased was in Mesquite, Texas. Most foundations in the Dallas area are either pier-and-beam or slab; basements are virtually non-existent. Our home was on a cement slab.
We enjoyed that home very much—it was bright, airy, nicely designed and just the right size. However, even though it was a new build, it was not without problems. One of the more vexing problems that surfaced after several years was a persistent leak in the roof. Being the intrepid first-time homeowner that I was, I was determined to fix that leak! I tried this and that, including getting on the roof during a heavy downpour to better diagnose the situation. However, my attempts to stop the leak were unsuccessful. I was getting quite frustrated. Water had actually run down an interior wall in the southwest corner of the house!
But when we found out the real cause of the leak I was aghast! Oh, that it had only been poor roofing workmanship or inferior roofing materials! But, no—the cement slab foundation had cracked and the entire front end of the house had dropped down! Hidden under the eaves above the crack line a separation had formed in the roof structure. Rainwater found its way through this opening into the house. The problem went way beyond water stained interior walls, and completely fixing the cause of the leak required much more than spreading some tar! The foundation repair company sank piers around the perimeter of the front of the house—and one right through our living room floor!—and then jacked up the front end to match the back end of the house.
Like I said, a solid foundation is essential for a structurally sound house! Similarly, a solid foundation is also essential for a sound spiritual life … for growing steadily in Christ. The apostle Paul put every ounce of energy he had into teaching Christians so that they would mature in Christ (Colossians 1:28-2:3), warning them of the forces at work to erode that solid foundation (Colossians 2:6-8). Satan himself works hard to undermine anyone’s pursuit of Jesus. (See Matthew 13:4, 19.)
Those lacking a solid foundation are susceptible to false teachers and cults, to abandoning the path of Jesus, and to moral collapse. Have you seen the effects of a “cracked” spiritual foundation? How is your foundation?
When the elders developed the vision for our church, we realized the importance of regularly providing foundational instruction in the Christian faith. I am excited to again be teaching the Foundations 1 curriculum in our Foundations Life Group! The Foundations 1 and Foundations 2 studies are a core part of our overall strategy for discipleship. Our goal is that every person who considers Clinton Evangelical Free Church their home church will go through Foundations 1 and 2.
If you haven’t yet taken the Foundations 1 course, this fall is the time to join the Foundations Life Group! Foundations 1 will equip you with what you need to know and do to grow as a Christian, launching you into a lifetime of walking with Jesus and serving Him. Topics include getting to know God, essentials of practical Christian living, what we believe, how God has wired you to serve Him, and how to share the good news of Jesus with others. It is a comprehensive course of study which will run from September 2017 through July 2018.
If you have already been through Foundations 1, you are welcome to attend again. We cover a lot of material and you may find a second go round helpful in solidifying parts of your foundation.
Sunday morning Life Groups and children’s Sunday School are on break for the entire month of August and on Labor Day weekend as well (September 3). We will resume on September 10. That’s the day you want to come to the fellowship hall at 9:00 to start working on your foundation!