Building God’s Way: Part Two

In the previous part of this series, I presented the concept of beginning with the end in mind. It is potentially one of the most critical things you can do to ensure that you accomplish your building goal. Having a clear view of the end is one of the things to help you stay motivated to fulfill the vision that is laid out. This second part is another piece of the puzzle that will help develop the picture of building God’s way.

Prioritizing God

You would think that prioritizing God would be a no-brainer. However, it can be quite apparent that there are many who do not. Granted, there can be instances where the visionary or person who began the building did make God a priority in the beginning stages. The net result however is that somewhere down the line, things got off track. Getting off track can happen for a multitude of reasons. You can look at any number of companies, organizations, institutions, and even nations that can trace their origin or history back to someone who was committed to building it by prioritizing what God wanted; yet through time, there was a drift or complete shift in direction or focus.

When Jesus began his process of building the church by preparing his disciples, he prioritized God. His prioritization came in a number of ways. The first way we can see is through prayer. Prayer was a central focus for Jesus. Even as he taught his disciples, we see several points where he is praying. When the disciples notice that his praying differs from that of the Pharisees, he gives them the pattern for prayer. When he ministered, he revealed the power and purpose in prayer, such as the time of the feeding of the multitude. He also showed them the comfort and strength of prayer during times of difficulty, such as when they had to escape from crowds or when he was preparing for the cross.

Second, we see Jesus prioritize God through the focused leading of God in all things. As a child, Jesus was determined to “be about my Father’s business (Luke 2:49).” Before Jesus launched into his ministry, he submitted to being baptized by John the baptizer and then allowed the Holy Spirit to lead him into the desert to fast, pray, and be tested by Satan. At one point, he revealed to the disciples, “I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by himself. He does only what he sees the Father doing. Whatever the Father does, the Son also does (John 5:19).” In other words, Jesus confined his actions to only the pattern that was set by his heavenly Father.

Third, Jesus prioritized God through the building on a foundation of the anointing. When Peter confessed that Jesus was Christ, he said that confession was the firm foundation upon which he was building the church so that the gates of hell would not be able to prevail against it.

You only need to look at Genesis chapter eleven to see the evidence of a people that chose not to prioritize God in the building process. In that chapter, we find all the people of the known world come together to build a great city and tower (Genesis 11:1-4). At no time do we see evidence that they prayed to determine God’s will. We do not see that there was any direction received from God for the building. There does not appear to be any pattern that was followed. In fact, the whole project was one of selfish desire, ego, and pride. Their foundation was built on man-made bricks and tar instead of stone. Can you see the fallacy in the use of man-made substances rather what were natural resources?

We who build today must prioritize God in the same fashion that Jesus did. The apostle Paul tells the people of Corinth, “If any man builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, his work will be shown for what it is because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man's work (1 Corinthians 3:12-13).” He was referencing the building of people who would be strong in the faith. He had laid a firm foundation. He gave a warning to them to be careful of building on a foundation other than the one that he and Apollos had built by God’s grace.

There is stability, longevity, protection, and validation that come when you prioritize God in your building. As you build, ensure that you have begun with the certainty that you are prioritizing His will. As Jesus taught his disciples to pray, he said that they ask that “Thy will be done!” Allow God to show you how He wants you to build. In the end. It should be about pleasing Him.