Credit where credit is due

Success can do weird things to people. The same people who previously depended on others now claim to be “self-made.” They get lost in the riches of success. Pride overtakes their soul. They become elite, above others, and self-entitled. Now, that certainly does NOT describe every successful person. I have heard many an athlete, actor, business owner give credit to those that got them there. I love it when someone wins an award but gives the real credit to the person behind the scenes who did the hard work.

According to the Bible, David was a successful man. He had great wealth. He was king over the land. He had a great army, great loyalty, and great leaders. Near the end of his life, he handed off the task of building the temple to his son, Solomon. But he did more than just hand it off; he gave a large amount of his personal wealth to the project. He used his success for Solomon’s success. You see, David never got weird about his success. He was grounded in the truth.

1 Chronicles 29:16 Lord our God, all this abundance that we have provided for building you a temple for your Holy Name comes from your hand, and all of it belongs to you.

David recognized an important truth: It all belongs to God. This is a man who had built great wealth throughout his life, but never did claim credit for it. He recognized that He was anointed and appointed by God. He recognized that God was his provider. He knew that his wealth came from the Lord. David gave credit where credit was due.

How about you? When you think about money, resources, and things, do you hold on to them with white knuckles? Do you live in fear that you won’t have enough? I want to challenge you today to trust God as your provider. Throughout our lives, there are times of lack and times of abundance. We must give credit where credit is due. As David said, “It all belongs to the Lord.”

 

Build that house

I’m not afraid to tackle a project I haven’t done before. In fact, today I discovered a broken laptop screen. So I took it apart and ordered a new screen. As long as I have some instructions I am willing to give it a shot. Some things are harder to build than others. For example, Ikea furniture. The instructions aren’t always clear and there are like a thousand parts. Maybe more difficult would be to build a house. If you’ve never done it before, it could be a serious challenge. It would require some devotion and probably some assistance.

In the Old Testament, King David really wanted to build a house. It wasn’t a house for himself; it was a house for the Lord – a sanctuary for God to dwell. He had all the plans drawn up according to God’s instruction. And when it came time to build, he turned to his son Solomon with this charge:

1 Chronicles 28:10 Consider now, for the Lord has chosen you to build a house as the sanctuary. Be strong and do the work.

What an overwhelming task – to build a house for the Lord! No pressure, Solomon. It’s just a house for GOD! Can you imagine following those instructions? He would be building a house in which God would dwell. If it were me, I’d certainly want to do a good job with it. I’d like to make the place inviting – a place where God would want to dwell. I would make sure there were no idols set up. I would even make sure the floors were clean, because I would want to honor the sanctuary of God. But man, that’s a really important job – building God’s house. I’m glad Solomon got the job and not me. Or did I?

1 Corinthians 3:16 says “Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you?” That means that each one of us is the house of the Lord. If that’s the case, then the Lord has chosen YOU to build a house as a sanctuary. You are to be a temple where the Spirit of God dwells. So you’ve got to ask yourself, have I followed His instructions? Are there any idols set up? Is there some cleaning I need to do?

Build your own personal house today. Examine the walls and see if any repairs need to be made. Look for cracks and leaks; look for cobwebs and dirty floors. Get working on that house. You are a sanctuary; you are His dwelling place. Be strong and do the work!