Day: June 16, 2023

Before farms and farmhouse style became all the rage, my family bought a small farm. We invested in this place because we believed God wanted us to raise our kids with a farm work ethic here. However, from our very first night here, I wondered what in the world we’d done to ourselves. I’d left behind my cute little suburbia home and entered a haunted house. Quite frankly, this place turned out to be beyond filthy. As we peeled back the layers, we found decades of debris. There was trash in every nook and cranny of the property. Literally everything – and I’m not exaggerating – everything was broken and needed repair. Mice ran through the walls, made their nests and left droppings on everything. This place was crazy, and I would have left in a heartbeat if I could have, because it was too difficult. I knew that, at some point, we would renovate this house. What I did not know was that God was going to use this place to renovate me! I’m sure that sounds like a country song, but it’s true. The craziness of my family’s farmhouse has become the unexpected building supply that God has used to build the house of my life. Over the years, He’s used this place to throw out the trash of my over-perfectionism. He’s cut down my ingratitude and built up endurance. He’s taught me patience, humility and faith. He’s taken away my fears of physical and spiritual darkness (not to mention rodents!) I never anticipated how He was going to orchestrate the construction of my life here. However, it has been a good journey, a God journey, as He has used unexpected things to work in me. Unexpected Building Materials We all think we know what will build our best lives. You know, there’s the American Dream and all. However, God’s dream for our lives includes things we may have never thought of as useful or purposeful. As we continue our “LIFE UNDER CONSTRUCTION” series, I think this is a really good way for us to look at Jesus’ teachings in what is commonly known as “The Beatitudes.”  We started this series by talking about the wise man and foolish man in Matthew 7 and how we want to build our lives on the rock of Jesus. Then, in the next conversation, as we looked at Jesus’ call in Matthew 4 to follow Him, we talked about letting go of our building plans for God’s plan.  Thing is, as the master builder and interior designer of our lives, God’s building plan will most likely use some building materials we may not have chosen to use. Right after calling His disciples to follow Him, Jesus taught them about what He was going to use in their lives. He said: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God” (Matthew 5:3-9). I’ll admit, “The Beatitudes” from Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount have always been hard for me to understand. However, this is what I do understand. When I think through Jesus’ Beatitudes in light of His building plan for my life, what I begin to see is that, in a world of building shortages, broken supply chains, stolen inventory and rising costs, God wastes nothing in His economy.  Even pain, hardship, suffering or loss have purpose when God is in charge of constructing the houses of our lives. Even mourning has value when He is in control. The world mocks what God values:  things like purity, righteousness and meekness. The world does everything possible to avoid poverty and mourning. Yet, these are some of the very things God can use, not only to build our lives, but also to bring blessing into the houses of our lives.  God’s Trustworthy Building Plan Accepting that God may use unexpected building materials requires us to trust Him. “O Lord of hosts,” the psalmist wrote, “Blessed is the one who trusts in you” (Psalm 84:12). We can cling to His promise that, “He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus” (Philippians 1:6). What’s more, “We know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28). He works for our good in all things? Really??? Mice did not seem good to me. Discovering decades of filth did not seem good to me. Wild animals, the worst well in the county and perpetual repairs on our farm did not seem good to me. What’s more, dealing with mind-numbing struggle and soul-scorching loss did not seem good to me. And yet, looking back, I can say that, at my farm and in my life, God has indeed been beyond trust-worthy in working it all together for my good. Let God Use Every Piece What about you? What are you thinking as you look at the house of your life right now? You may not see any way that what you are going through could bring blessing. You may look at the unexpected suffering or struggle you are facing, and you may reason that there’s no way it could ever lead to salvation or sustenance. I get it. Truth is, if it were entirely up to you and I to bring good out of the bad, such would be IMPOSSIBLE. However, as we build our lives on the rock of Jesus, we can know that He’s got us. His is the hand holding our hands. Scripture says, “It is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good