So as I'm reading this book of the Old Testament, it spends a great deal of time talking about this temple that King Solomon is building to the Lord. It goes on for 5 Chapters over 8 Bible pages which is about the equivalent of 20 pages of a normal book. It describes the plans, the building materials, the details, the people that built it, how long it took, the dimensions of different rooms and furniture, the prayer of dedication, and so much more in regards to this Temple that Solomon is building for the Lord.
As I'm reading this I must admit I was getting a little bored and wondering why all of this seemingly arbitrary information regarding the details of building a building is in the Bible. I mean you could summarize this information in at least 1 Chapter, maybe even a paragraph.
But that's not what happened. That's not how it's written. So I begin to ask myself, think, pray, and ask God "Why in the world are all of these details for building a Temple included in the Bible?"
And then it occurred to me. Maybe it clicked, maybe I overlooked something before, or maybe God spoke to me and gave me the answer. But this is what I found.
Solomon acknowledged that all of this blessings, resources, and influence were gifts from God, so he dedicated his life to bringing honor and glory to God and advancing His Kingdom.
King Solomon, the wisest man that ever lived, wanted to do the best he could to bring honor and glory to God. So he took his time. He made plans. He listed his physical, financial, and human resources. He listed his allies from neighboring towns. He spent years planning and more years building this Temple to God so that generations could see how God had been faithful and worship God for centuries to come.
Solomon didn't just throw money into an offering plate. He didn't just randomly support a cause that he heard about at a concert, commercial, or from a celebrity. He didn't just help someone in need when the situation presented itself. There is absolutely nothing wrong with any of these things in fact they are great ways to love your neighbor and Glorify God.
But Solomon took it a step further. Many steps further. He counted all of the gifts, talents, abilities, resources, and influence that God had blessed him with and he strategically found a way that he could best Glorify God with his life. He thought beyond today, this week, and this month and strategically developed a plan to Glorify God over his entire life and with his legacy.
Whoa. I don't do that. But I want to. So I began to list my blessings, resources, gifts, talents and abilities and think how I could best use them to strategically glorify God. It was a challenging and encouraging process that I highly recommend.
For me, I took all of my blessings in the form of material things such as TV, computer, cell phone, etc and began to look at them as tools to glorify God. So what does that look like? Let me give you 2 examples:
With the blessing of an iPhone I can:
- Communicate love with family and friends.
- Encourage others via social media.
- Read the bible via the youversion Bible app and share scripture.
- Take pictures and video that capture blessings and use them to remember how God has been faithful.
- Listen to music and podcasts that honor God.
With the blessing of a house I can:
- Invite friends and family over to share life together.
- Host parties and celebrations.
- Show others hospitality.
- Provide a temporary safe place to stay for others.
- Share meals, conversations, laughter, tears, and accountability with others.
The list could go on and on. Just look at the blessings in your life and think of them as tools to serve others, honor God, and advance His Kingdom. I think you'll be surprised to see all of the creative ways you can bless others with what He has blessed you with!
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