In the fourth century, Sarapion the desert father traveled from his monastery in Egypt to visit a woman in the city of Rome. The woman had become widely known for her devotion to Jesus, but, unlike Sarapion, she did not retreat into the desert. She stayed firmly planted in the noise and chaos of urban life.

When Sarapion found her, she was quietly sitting in her room. He asked her, “Why are you sitting here?” She answered, “I’m not sitting, I am on a journey.” 

Journeys can look many different ways - sometimes it happens right where we are. We are on a journey as a church, to get through it we need practices that will mold us. Desire is not enough.

Matthew 7:24 “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. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”

We want to build our lives on something substantial, or we’ll be unaware that we’re standing on sand. We want to be built on the Rock, and a desire for it is important but Jesus is telling us what is required is practice.

To build wisely means putting Jesus’ words into practice. Jesus doesn't call us to perfect them or be experts but to practice. Thats what a Rule of Life can help us do, it helps us to have a plan for the Spiritual practices that make up our lives because they bring us close to Jesus.

How does it look like to build on sand vs rock. Individually there are many ways but culturally we can see the Sand that our culture is founded on.   vs The Rock that Jesus promises

hurry & exhaustion, rest through the practice of sabbath

distraction & escapism            Live in communion with God through prayer

indulgence & immorality          experiencing holiness through times of fasting

anxiety & noise                 having peace through the practice of solitude

ideological compromise & folly     be a person of conviction through the scripture

individualism & superficiality       a people of love and honesty through the practice of community

injustice & division               justice, mercy, and reconciliation through service.

hostility & loneliness             a community of hospitality through our evangelism

consumerism & greed          we learn to be contentment through generosity

This is what we know the goal of the journey is. If you aren’t sure you buy it, doubt if Jesus is telling the truth, Jesus speaks to our doubts too.

John 7: 16 Jesus answered, “My teaching is not my own. It comes from the one who sent me. Anyone who chooses to do the will of God will find out whether my teaching comes from God or whether I speak on my own.

There is a way to know if Jesus’ words true. By choosing to do his will we will know if Jesus is telling the truth or not.

Or maybe you’ve learned to be ok living a life of hurry, distractions, like indulging, rush anxiety, compromise, individualism, division, hostility, consumerism - So why do it? If I still have faith and salvation whats the point?

Exodus 12: 24 “Obey these instructions as a lasting ordinance for you and your descendants. When you enter the land that the Lord will give you as he promised, observe this ceremony. And when your children ask you, ‘What does this ceremony mean to you?’ then tell them, ‘It is the Passover sacrifice to the Lord, who passed over the houses of the Israelites in Egypt and spared our homes when he struck down the Egyptians.’” Then the people bowed down and worshiped.” 

Passover a yearly practice was to remind them and bring them near God but God also wanted to reach the next generation. Children will ask why you do the things you do. It takes courage to get out of our comfort zones for the next generation. Let's hear from teens: What was the rally like? What was your favorite part? How did you connect with God at the Rally?  What are ways teens can connect with God in everyday life? Whats the hardest thing about being a teenager today? 

We have our motivators. I want to follow Jesus’ words and put them in practice. Or I want to know if I can trust him, let me try and see. Or let me do this for others, for the next generation. I want to encourage you to embrace these and to be more intentional than ever in your walk with God, to practice his words and to help one another - so that as we encourage others, we have others who are helping us as we journey with God.