How many here now are building a home?
I'm not asking how many built a house out of concrete, wood and stone.
How many are currently building a home?

The building of houses is big business in South Florida.
I have known many outstanding builders.
It is difficult work that requires great skill.
And when it comes to filling the house, where do you turn: Ethan Allen, Wallmart, or an antique shop?
I guess it depends on your situation.
Many homes are furnished with Early American childhood.
The pictures on the wall are surrounded by fingerprints, and art pieces are on the refrigerator,
and the furniture is used for jumping and climbing.

Anyone can build a house, and anyone can fill that house with beautiful things, but the Bible
describes something far more important, far more valuable than any house.
God's word tells us how to build a home.

What kind of society have we developed for our children and grandchildren?
We have been on a downward spiral for years.
And recent events in our schools and in our society have caused us to question
our communities and our homes.
For instance: "How well do you know your kid?"
How are you building your home?
God's Word teaches us how to build in Proverbs 24:1-4.

Build your home with wisdom.

The Hebrew word for "wisdom" means skill.
As a contractor must have the knowledge and skill to build a house, parents should have
the knowledge and skill to build a home.
Parents need the wisdom that comes from God.
Proverbs 9:10 teaches, "The Fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom."

Wisdom comes from knowing God, respecting God, loving God, and following His word.
Wisdom doesn't come easy.
This wisdom is given by God.

What qualities are you using.
Proverbs warns against envy.
Envy is dissatisfaction with what you have and a desire to have what you do not have.
You see what someone else has, and think that if you had what they have then you would be happy.
Many will look at marriage and a family and say, if I can find a mate and have children
then I would be happy.
This is the cinderella syndrome.

Charles Swindoll said: "There are three rings in marriage, the engagement ring,
the wedding ring, and suffering."
A worldly wisdom says, "If I feel like I am suffering and I am not happy, then the first two rings
are null and void."
And unconsciously, we communicate this truth to our children.
How many times do we say, "I just want my children to be happy?"
But a home filled with envy will crumble when the storms come.
There is a difference between happiness that is dependent on how I feel and what I have,
and the joy that comes from godly wisdom.
How do you get this kind of wisdom?
Ask God for wisdom and He will give it in abundance. (James 1:5)

We celebrate Mother's Day because our mothers have been vital in the building of homes.
Through human history mothers have sacrificed their own lives to see that their children had
what they needed to make it in the world.

Dwight D.Eisenhower said, "The greatest person I ever met wasn't a man.
It was a woman. It was my mother. She never had much schooling, but she was wise in God's wisdom.
She went to school to the greatest of all books, the Bible.
And she acquired real wisdom."

Mothers and Fathers, the greatest contribution you can make to your children is to lead them
to know about God.

Establish your home with an understanding spirit.

The word, "establish," means "to set in order" or "place something in an upright position."
The Hebrew word for "understand"means "to look at the heart of an issue and determine
what is at stake in the choices being weighed."

A carpenter needs the proper tools to set a straight line, so also parents needs the proper tools
to keep the family straight.
The home needs a plumb line to know.
If you allow the standards of the world to dictate how your home is built, it will eventually topple.
You must build your home according to the teachings of God's word.
God will give you the ability to discern between good and evil.
and He will help you make the critical choice between that which is good and that which is best.
When faced with the choices of life, God will give us understanding to know what is best for our home.

Today moms and dads are leaving the marriage thinking that the children will be survivors
and actually grow stronger.
They show no understanding.
Children need a mom and dad to model for them how to love, how to disagree, and how to forgive.
They need to see how parents choose good over evil, and the best instead of merely the good.

Furnish your home with knowledge.

How have you furnished your home? We furnish our homes with all kind of gadgets.
We seem to want our children to have more gadgets than goodness.
Our homes are more open to all kinds of worldly temptations.
Television, videos, music, and the Internet are such sources.
Through these media our homes can be blessed or cursed.
That is why the Scripture teaches, "Do not desire to be with evil men." (24:1).

This refers to what you do outside your home, and to what comes into your home.
You choose how you will furnish your home.
The Bible says, "Reverence and respect for the Lord is the beginning of knowledge."
Furnish your home with knowledge and worship God at home as you do at church.
Teach your children reading, writing, and arithmetic, but also teach them the Word of God
and the love of God.
Parents, your children must see you live the Christian life.
Teach them what God has taught you.

Our nation has been shocked by the murders at our schools.
Here is how one young lady made an lasting impact on our nation.
Cassie Bernall was facing possible death at Columbine High School.
Cassie Bernall was asked by the young man with a gun, "Do you believe in God."

She thoughtfully considered the outcome of her answer and said, "Yes, I believe in God."
Those words came from her lips because years before her parents had established her home
with understanding.

Years earlier, when she was rebelling, pursuing drugs, alcohol and witchcraft, her mother Misty Bernall said,
"She could not make (wise) decisions for herself, so we had to make them for her."
They did not believe that a parent shouldn't pick their child's friends.
They cut off her contact from those who were bad influences and began to monitor her actions.
Cassie was permitted only to attend church.
And it was on a church retreat that Cassie not only met new friends who helped her make
better choices, but also she met Jesus Christ.
She came back vowing to show her parents that she was taking a new direction in life.

And only two days before her death she said on a video tape the truth she had found:
"You really can't live without Christ.
It's, like, impossible to really have a really true life without him."

Through tragedy we hear her words.
But she expressed her faith because her parents took steps to build her home with wisdom,
establish it with understanding, and furnish it with knowledge.
We pray that tragedy will never come to our homes.
But we all know that is a possibly.
The storms of life will come.
Will your home stand when the storms come?

Jesus said: "Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine, and acts upon them,
may be compared to a wise man, who built his house upon the rock.
And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and burst against that house;
and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded upon the rock.
And everyone who hears these words of Mine, and does not act upon them, will be like a foolish man,
who built his house upon the sand.
And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and burst against that house;
and it fell, and great was its fall." (Mt. 7:24-27).

Today, determine to build your home on the Rock.
Build your home on Jesus!

Sermon Adapted