I Corinthians 3:11 (NIV) -- No one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ

One day, many years ago, my brother and I invented a game we called "Dummy Step". We had a set of corrugated cardboard building blocks. The blocks were about a foot long, half a foot wide and a few inches thick. One of us would build a staircase out of those blocks, but one of the blocks would be missing. When the other of us would walk up the stairs, he would step on the "Dummy Step" and the stairs would collapse and he would fall down onto the couch cushions we had placed on the floor. One evening my sister played "Dummy Step" with my brother. She wasn't careful. When she walked on the "Dummy Step" and fell down, she flew right over the cushions and hit her head on the ceramic milk can in the corner of the room. A shaky foundation can be a dangerous thing.

What is the foundation on which your life is built? We often hear that "If you don't have your health, you don't have anything." The same is often said about a good reputation. We often determine who we are based on our standing in the community, our job, our financial status, or other earthly standards.

These things are shaky foundations. Good health can disappear in the blink of an eye. A good reputation can disappear in a cloud of gossip. Our jobs and financial status are only good as long as we are in demand. If we build our lives on things like these, our lives can fall apart at any time.

Jesus gives us a better foundation on which to build. Jesus gives us hope and confidence which won't fall apart. As sinners, whatever shaky foundations we could build for ourselves all come to nothing at the end of our lives. Our sins earn us God's punishment, no matter how good our health or our reputation or our community service. On our own we can never rescue ourselves from that eternal punishment. Jesus came to rescue us from that punishment by paying for our sins himself. He died on the cross to earn forgiveness for us and to give us a solid foundation on which to build our lives and our faith.

Without Jesus, we could have no solid foundation in our lives because our lives could only end in disaster--rejection by God and an eternity of suffering. Thanks to Jesus, we have a far different future to look forward to--life with God in heaven. Building our lives on the foundation of Jesus' sacrifice means that we turn away from the sins which before had condemned us. Instead, we work to serve God through our worship and through our obedience; we work to serve our neighbor by showing to others the same love God has shown us, by always looking for opportunities to help those in need.

Let your firm foundation show in your life, in everything you say and do. Show the peace you have from knowing that God forgives you through Jesus, and the joy you have from knowing that your future lies in heaven.