^8-9 Then God said:

“Here’s what I want you to do:
    Climb into the hills and cut some timber.
Bring it down and rebuild the Temple.
    Do it just for me. Honor me.
You’ve had great ambitions for yourselves,
    but nothing has come of it.
The little you have brought to my Temple
    I’ve blown away—there was nothing to it.

^9-11 “And why?” (This is a Message from God-of-the-Angel-Armies, remember.) “Because while you’ve run around, caught up with taking care of your own houses, my Home is in ruins. That’s why. Because of your stinginess. And so I’ve given you a dry summer and a meager crop. I’ve matched your tight-fisted stinginess by decreeing a season of drought, drying up fields and hills, withering gardens and orchards, stunting vegetables and fruit. Nothing—not man or woman, not animal or crop—is going to thrive.” Hag. 1:8-11 (MSG)

While I was reading the verses above, the Holy Spirit prompted me to include them in a blog post. So here they are. “Why?” you might be asking yourself. I observe people. I listen when they talk about their lives, and many times, I hear what is consuming their time and consuming them.

A lot of people are focusing on their own lives. They are building new homes or moving into bigger ones. Purchasing the latest car or trying to acquire a higher-paying job. Others may be in pursuit of a relationship.

On the other side of the coin are those that are consumed while trying to make ends meet. Wondering how they are going to pay the electric bill or feed their family.

There is nothing wrong with trying to do the best you can in life. There are no issues with wanting bigger and better things, but when your pursuit becomes all you can think about, it becomes wrong. On the other hand, worrying about how your needs will be met can be bad, too.

If the things in life become more important than your relationship or trust in God, then they are wrong. That is what the scriptures above are talking about. You see, our bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit. God doesn’t want to be ignored or take a backseat to anyone or anything else. Nor should he. Don’t be surprised if God backs off from your life. Not to hurt you but to turn your face back to him.

Keeping our focus on our relationship with God should be our number one priority in life. Doing so helps us with the other things in life that compete for our attention. A right-side relationship with God puts the other things in our lives in perspective. Keeping our temples pure and holy pleases God, and then he will be happy to dwell among us.

Copyright © 2024 Mark Brady. All rights reserved.