“And
the whole remnant of the people obeyed the voice of the LORD…and the people
feared [trusted in] the LORD…So, the LORD stirred up…the spirit of the whole
remnant of the people.”—Haggai 1:12-14
It is one of the easiest things in
life to do: putting off something that seems too overwhelming to
accomplish by spending our time and energy doing a bunch of stuff to make our own little
worlds comfortable and secure—and then staying in that own little world. We
forget that, before the beginning of time, God created every single one of us for something beyond
ourselves, something of eternal significance that would bust us out of our comfort zones.
This is what is happening here in
this tiny Old Testament book filled with a blockbuster life lesson and life
inspiration. The people of God have been called to rebuild the ruins of the
temple—they’ve heard the assignment, they see the huge task ahead of them, they
think about it a lot, they talk about it even more…and then busy themselves
with building their own little houses, which is all well and good up to a
point, but neglecting God's larger call on their lives.
This is every one of us. Some are
more resolved and determined and industrious than others, but to some extent,
we’ve all been in the Haggai story: shaken by the prospects of lack of confidence and ability for the brick-laying task ahead, and forgetting this vital nugget of Truth:
…we are HIS workmanship, HIS own
master work, a work of art, created in Christ Jesus (reborn from
above—spiritually transformed, renewed, ready to be used) for good works, which
GOD prepared for us beforehand, taking paths which HE set, so that we would
walk in them...living the good life which HE prearranged and made ready for
us.—Ephesians 2:10, Amplified
Sometimes, we get stuck waiting for perfect timing, perfect life circumstances, no bills to pay, or "maybe after I take some more Bible courses, then..." when all the while, our temple-building assignment of eternal significance is often the one right in front of us: spiritually nurturing a child, caring for a parent, serving week after week in a tiny Sunday School room, relating humbly and graciously with co-workers, being available to listen, to lift a heavy box or a mood of despair.
It has nothing to do with our season in life, our size
and stature, or talents, or looks, or smarts, and
everything with, day by day, simply choosing to give God glory and worshiping Him with the very life He has given us and choosing
not to be distracted by doing lots of things that don’t always matter much in
the end. Sounds good enough..but never easy. Which is why the Word is always spot on, and that God puts examples in our lives, like the folks in Haggai, to help push us forward.
It's also good to know that when God calls us to do something,
to build something, to re-build something—even a very difficult thing—when we, like this small band of God's children,
swallow hard and, against every ounce of our screaming selfness choose to obey
and trust Him, He will shake off our shakinness and “stir up” within us the strength, the will, the know-how,
the determination, the
perseverance, and even the teammates, to complete the task...
...Then Haggai, the Lord’s messenger, spoke the Lord’s message to the people saying, “ ‘I am with you,’ declares the Lord.”
"God is not looking for people to
work for Him, but people who let Him work mightily in and through them."—John
Piper
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