The Leak You Don’t Know You Have

On July 20, 2025, I awoke to a sickening feeling.

I heard water running, and my feet found water before my eyes did. I knew the cause immediately. We had a foundation leak.

After a call to the plumber who fixed the leak, I took stock. I knew it could be expensive, but I never realized how much.

The insurance company carted off much of our goods and moved us into a hotel for a quarter of a year. Contractors ripped up the hardwood floors we loved. With the old wood out of production, we searched for what came close.

Wallboard got cut out (because of the potential hazard of asbestos), revealing another leak at the washing machine and damage to an exterior panel on the house.

That forced an uncomfortable question. Did the foundation cause the leak? So we had our 50-year-old home checked. It needed leveling. After a two-day process, it was done…at least we thought.

The foundation’s shift had created six breaks in our sewer line, requiring tunnels and jackhammering beneath our home.

What is not apparent is what costs the most. It’s not only the concrete that needs attention. Lives do as well.

A weakened body is painful, limiting your movement and activity — and the health care costs of neglect rise with age.

A dwindling spiritual life can leave you hollow and depressed. You don’t have the resources to meet life’s challenges, such as death and grief, or anxiety. A bad conscience can result.

An unstimulated mind grows flabby. It loses its ability to think clearly and critically. Curiosity and learning slow to a slight trickle.

The foundations of mind, body, and spirit falter, and life’s foundation shifts and cracks.

The writer of Hebrews, after a majestic opening about Christ, turns to his readers with urgency.

“Therefore we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it.” (Hebrews 2:1, ESV)

Drift doesn’t announce itself. Neither did our foundation.

I have arthritic knees, but I moved more stiffly. I sat down, but did not control the descent. I simply plopped down. I could sense falls and broken bones in my future.

So earlier this year, I went for “preventative physical therapy.” I wanted to strengthen my muscles and improve my movement and balance.

I focused more on my Bible reading sessions to deepen what I already knew. Relying on old knowledge dulls the spirit. It needed more attention — and in giving it, I found more steadiness than I expected.

Don’t wait for the foundation to break before fixing it. Look at what holds up your life, what maintains your spirit, and binds your relationships together. Does it need “much closer attention?”

Where do you feel most vulnerable right now? What would shake your life most if it failed?

These are not comfortable questions. But they are better asked now than answered later in a crisis.

Examine your life for what is foundational. Check its stability to determine how to shore it up. Then find one thing this week, month, or year to have a stronger foundation for the future.