Ministry

When the Floor Feels Uneven 

I once lived in a house built on clay. 

It looked fine at a glance, and we managed, but the longer you lived in it, the more you noticed the foundation had a say in everything.

As the weather changed, so did the house. Cracks in the walls would open in one season and close in another. In one room, the door wouldn’t shut properly because the frame had shifted over time. In another, you could step on a floorboard and feel the floor lift up a few metres away. Every now and then we’d put a marble on the floor and watch which way it rolled, and in every room, it would head off in a different direction. There were spots where you could just feel your body compensating, slightly off-balance, without even thinking about it. 

And when we had people over, I found myself explaining the oddities. 

'Oh yeah, that door sticks.' 

'Don’t worry about that crack.' 

'Watch that bit of floor.' 

We could live with it, but storms were different. When the wind and rain hit, it was hard to feel certain. The house became a regular topic of conversation because, deep down, we knew it wasn’t as secure as it should be. 

In a strange way, life can feel like that too. 

When our foundations aren’t solid, we can still function, still smile, show up, get things done, but it’s easy to feel a bit uneven inside. Boundaries become harder to hold. Patterns repeat. We explain things away: 'That’s just how I am.' And when trouble comes conflict, stress, disappointment, loss we’re never quite sure what will stay standing. 

The good news is that Jesus doesn’t meet us with shame for the cracks. He meets us with care, and with a better way to build. 

Jesus once spoke about two builders: one who built on rock, and one who built on sand. The storm came to both, but only one house stayed secure (Matthew 7:24–27). 

Jesus wasn’t saying, 'Perfect people don’t have storms.' He was saying, 'You can have a foundation that holds.' 

Jesus is the master builder. He knows what can be repaired, what needs strengthening, and what needs to be made new. He works with what’s already there, your story, your stresses, your habits, your hopes, and he steadily builds something stronger. 

A question to ponder this week: Where in my life do I feel a bit 'uneven' and what might it look like to let Jesus strengthen that foundation? 

Chris Mann

College Pastor