Building Up, or Tearing Down

Have you ever seen a building implode?  In mere seconds, a building that took months to build becomes a pile of rubble.  I know there's a lot of work that goes into it beforehand, to make sure that the building doesn't fall down on the neighbors.  But in the end, tearing down only takes minutes, or even seconds.

Building that building took months, or even years.

Let that sink in.  Building up takes far more time and effort than tearing down.

I can build up my brothers and sisters in Christ for years, decades even, and all that can be undone in moments by bad choices.

My witness can be decimated with just a few bad decisions.  And Christ's reputation is harmed.

I can leave friendships and family relationships broken and bleeding by my refusal to take the log from my own eye first.  It's really not that hard.

And yes, there is a time to tear down, as well as a time to build up.  There is certainly a time to tear down rotten walls, or poor foundation.  But then the rebuilding comes.  And it takes time.  Much more time that the tearing down.

Every day, I must decide if today is a day of tearing down or building up.  I must make a conscious choice as to whether or not I'm going to build up the foundation and walls of my husband and children, of my relationship with God.

Today, I chose to build.  It's slow work, sometimes painfully slow.  But one day, I will reap the rewards of the work, if I do not quit.  Maybe (probably), some portions will need tearing down one day.  No one is perfect, and I am certainly no exception.  But as God helps, and He allows, I will build up those around me.

With a Heavy Heart

"Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints." Psalm 116:15 (ESV)

Sometimes the reality of death is heavier than others.  It bears down, darkens the edges of our vision, and makes our hearts heavy.

Today is such a day.  You see, two people have died today.  One young, unexpectedly, the result of a tragic automobile accident.  The other, older, the matriarch of four generations of family, ill for many years and rapidly declining.  Neither one knew the other, but I knew them both.  One was family, the other a friend.  Both loved their Lord, and leave behind many grieving.

But their deaths are precious to God.  No longer separate from Him, they are both, today, with Him forever, singing, laughing and dancing with Jesus.  They are actually MORE alive today than they were yesterday, or even the day they were born.

This life is but a mere shadow of existence.  A shadow that seems real to us, because we are also shadows.  One day, we will also live this reality, be a part of this reality.

But for now, death looms, and those left behind grieve.