A few years ago, my family and I were living in a relatively new subdivision, the sort of neighborhood where all the houses have a similar look and feel. At the time, none of the homes were more than a few years old—but they didn’t all hold up the same.
One time, after a particularly big rainstorm, our neighbors roof leaked. The water that came into the house soaked into their walls and floors. It was a big, expensive mess to fix. Even after all the remodeling work, they discovered the moisture had left their house with an ongoing mold problem. Our homes were built around the same time—same building company, same roofer, same materials, and yet for some reason, our roof was fine and theirs was a disaster.
There are no guarantees in this life. No matter how hard we work or how much we plan, we may still find ourselves laying out tarps and placing buckets in the dining room during a torrential downpour. The Bible says, “Unless the LORD builds the house, the builders labor in vain” (Psalm 127:1). This applies to real houses and anything else we try to build for ourselves. Only God can keep our work from toppling over.
The saddest thing about this passage is that it was written by King Solomon. If you know anything about Solomon’s story, you know that God built him a house—a dynasty that would last forever with his offspring forever on the throne in a grand succession leading to Jesus. But Solomon took his eyes off of God and chased after the idols and false gods of other nations. He rested in his own strength and wisdom, and neglected the Lord. As a result, God took most of the kingdom away from his son, Rehoboam.
The legacy Solomon could have had was fractured and weak and eventually crumbled, only to be restored when Jesus came on the scene. To be sure, God’s faithfulness cannot be voided by our unfaithfulness, but our choices have real consequences—and Solomon’s decisions affected the course of history.
Look around our world today. What do you see? Our work is nothing unless the Lord is in it. That’s why the truly wise never take their eyes off of Him.
It’s October—and that means one thing: people like me start listening to Christmas music! If you’re one of the brave souls who sets your soul to the spirit of the season a bit earlier than most, please check out my new book, Rediscovering Christmas, available now in all the usual places. And if you enjoy it, please leave a review on Amazon.com and Christianbook.com. Those reviews are more important that you may know. Thanks!
Pages of Joy // John Greco 
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