“Anyone who built on that foundation may use a variety of materials – gold, silver, jewels, wood, hay or straw. But on judgement day, fire will reveal what kind of work the builder has done. The fire will show if a person’s work has value. If the work survives, that builder receives a reward. But if the work is burned up, the builder will suffer great loss. The builder will be saved but like someone escaping through a wall of flames.” (1 Corinthians 3:12-15 NLT)
Christ is the foundation on which we build, but the question remains, what are we building? Will it last the test of eternity? What is wood and straw and what is precious and fire-resistant?
The builder who escapes with nothing leaves the world as a fire-rescue victim, with smoke clinging to the clothes on their back and nothing more.
My cousin spent a good bit of the weekend with us. He’s a brilliant guy and we always engage in interesting conversation. Somehow we got around the the subject of the financial strategy texts his dad (my uncle) likes to routinely send me. My uncle desperately wants me to “move past Dave Ramsey economics” into something more strategic and lucrative. I know that my uncle’s intentions are good, I know that he loves me and he’s looking out for me. His highest hope for our financial life is to create a passive income stream that could fund our ministry. He doesn’t understand that I don’t want to spend that level of effort and focus during my brief ministry opportunities here on earth. Money just isn’t that important to me. I want to spend the bulk of my time and energy on the things that will last for eternity, not run the risk of getting stuck in the mindset of getting ahead. I appreciate my uncle’s vision and motivation, it’s just not who I am or congruent with who I desire to become. I’m not about acquiring assets, I’m about investing in people. Life is too short and the temptation to build our own Kingdom is far too great. I’m going to continue to focus on the few things I’m sure about: family, ministry, spiritual growth. I’m going to continue to trust the Lord to fund His ministry through me as He sees fit.
Quite honestly, I have waded through a home filled to the brim with wood and straw: the stuff that simply burns off as a soul passes from this life into the next. Accumulating temporal things leaves a messy legacy for others to sort through and discard. A life assembled with fire-proof materials leaves few questions about our values when we transition from this world to the next.
“Don’t store up treasures here on earth, where moths eat them and thieves break in and steal. Store up your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy and thieves do not break in and steal. Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be.” (Matthew 6:19-21 NLT)
Lord, we long to honor You with our one little life. Let us build something humble, but solid, with materials that will not fade away when the page turns to eternity. Help us keep full focus
on the things that last. Amen.