At the Construction Site:

Matthew 7:24-27 (NIV) 
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. ²⁵ 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.
²⁶ 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. ²⁷ The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash."

When I was a child I used to enjoy watching construction workers build things.  I could sit for hours watching them work away at mixing concrete, hoisting support beams, laying rebar…it all fascinated me.  I longed to see the finished product, a completed project that took hours, even days to complete.  I would go by the construction site day after day on my way to school just to see how much progress they had made in the hours that I had been away.  I was invested in witnessing the completed project, though it wasn’t my house, I still wanted, I longed to see it finished.  

By the time the construction of the remodeled home was completed, the workers there knew me by name.  Why?  Because I wasn’t content in just watching, I wanted to know why and how they were doing any and every task.  I was insanely curious…and so I asked a lot of questions.  Luckily, the foreman (who must have had children of his own) was a patient man who didn’t mind giving me an answer from time to time.  He was competent and considerate of my age and so explained it as a parent would to a child; in simple terms.   He explained why they put wire mesh in with the concrete or why rebar was there at all…it would make the structure stronger and would last longer.  He also explained why the bubble on the level had to be in the middle so that the work they did would stand and not fall down because it was uneven.  I asked many questions and thankfully that foreman answered most of them with the patience of a saint. 

Why talk about this experience?  Why mention it? Am I just trying to relive my childhood?  Perhaps…but it’s more than that.  It makes me think of what kind of foundation I am laying in my own spiritual with God.  Many times in my life I have thought about those conversations with that foreman in the context of my spiritual journey with Christ.  Am I living a balanced life?  Have I continued to be firmly rooted in His word?  Is the foundation of my life what it should be?  Introspectively I have asked myself these questions many, many times.  I don’t say this in boasting, by any means, but a right relationship with God is that important to me.  Is it to you? 

Years later I tried my hand at building stuff…turns out I’m just not that gifted at construction with my hands.  But I will never forget those lessons that I learned as a child by simply passing by a construction site day after day on my way to and from school. 

How is your foundation?   Has it been reinforced with the rebar of fellowship with other Christians?  Are there cracks forming along the walls of your faith because of wear and tear and pressures of life?   At our conversion we align ourselves with Christ.  We accept His sacrifice on the cross for our sins and we essentially say God rebuild me.  Tear down the old, remove the dirty and broken, and start again.  In that process we gain new life, a new construction takes place and there is life on our spiritual property.  But here’s a big issue:  Many remain at the altars of their lives professing Christ and declaring “I’m a Christian”, but they never grow from there.  God expects us to mature in our faith.  He has provided us the best foundation in His son Jesus Christ, but we have to allow the Holy Spirit to begin the transformation within us.  We can’t remain baby Christians…or essentially just a foundation without a structure built on top.  God’s presence within us, which is the Holy Spirit, wants to develop in us a deeper, stable structure of maturity and faith. 

If your life needs some renovation, some rebuilding…will you allow God to begin that in you today?  He’s the best foreman for the job and He can be trusted to finish that construction of holiness in you!  The foundation is already firmly laid.  But without a strong, stable structure on top, which is holiness and spiritual maturity, we are still vulnerable and unstable in the temptations and elements of our old lives. 

Prayer:

Father in Heaven, thank you for your Son who made it possible for me to be redeemed, I ask now that you would continue in me Your work.  Transform me through the work of Your Holy Spirit, grant me the strength to address issues that still exist within my life that are yet remnants of my old ways.  Allow me wisdom and discernment to study your word and to apply it in my living day by day.   I want to be the creation you have intended for me.   Deliver me from sin and from temptation, as I know I must avoid their trappings in order to mature and to grow in Your grace.  May it be so in my life today.  Amen.