June 9

1kings 5:1-6:38;acts 7:1-29;psalm 127:1-5;proverbs 16:28-30

Psalm 127:1-2, "Unless the Lord builds the house, the work of the builders is wasted. Unless the Lord protects a city, it's watchmen guarding it will do no good. It is useless for you to work so hard from early morning until late at night, anxiously working for food to eat. For God gives rest to the ones He loves."


Dear Reader,
I'm not sure how familiar you are with what it takes to construct a home or even how handy you are when it comes to it's upkeep. Some gentlemen reading this may consider themselves to be a real "pro" when it comes to fixing the garbage disposal or garage door, although some of your wives may disagree! A few of you may even have an actual degree in architecture. I personally, do not know a single thing connected to the construction of a home and I wouldn't even attempt to fix our garbage disposal!

Regardless of your level of understanding in the field of architecture, we all have a "master's degree" in the field of worry and anxiety. This may sound comical, but it's really not far from the truth. Think about it...

This passage is not referring to the construction of a home, rather it is referring to the construction of a person's life. These verses paint a vivid picture of man and his frequent tendency to exhaust himself in an attempt to be "successful" or fulfill God's call on his life. Verse 2 says, "It is useless for man to work so hard from early morning until late at night, anxiously working for food to eat." Of course, God is not stating that it is not necessary to be a hard worker! But, he is revealing a profound truth: Anxiety will drive us to exhaustion and profit us nothing. We can compare the exhausting work of the man in verse 2 to what many of us will do on any given day: devote our thoughts and attention to our fears and worries. From sun up to sun down, we are occupied and working diligently to "build" our dreams and "fix" our lives. Often times, the enemy will successfully trick you and I to believe that by overcompensating in our flesh (aka, worrying, doubting, strategizing), we will somehow bring about what we cannot see in the Spirit (aka, the promise of God). I love the way the Message puts it, "If God doesn't build the house, the builders only build shacks. If God doesn't guard the city, the watchmen might as well nap! It is useless to get up early and go to bed late, working your worried fingers to the bone. Don't you know that God enjoys giving rest to the ones He loves?" In other words: When you have obeyed God regarding His call on your life, the next step is to rest in the promise He gave you! Engaging your mind in anxiety and worry instead of choosing to rest in God's promise is as foolish as denying your physical body rest in order to build a great mansion. When you do this, you actually decrease your own productivity and at the end of the day, you are left with a shack!

Beloved, know that you are God's masterpiece and every detail of your life is constructed perfectly. When GOD builds the house, the end result is never a shack!
I pray that faith will rise in your hearts and that you will look ahead confidently to the fulfillment of God's promise for your life!

Warmly,

Lauryn Everett (Guest devotion writer and wife of Tyler Everett Hillcrest Worship leader)