I like thinking about how a house is built. I work for a residential construction company and enjoy hearing a glimpse of all the details that go into homes. It amazes me the order, the complexity and the beautiful results.
In addition to that, I admire the architecture and character of older homes. I dream of living in one someday. Maybe I’ll have the opportunity to work on fixing it up or maybe it will be one someone has already done the majority of the work on. Who knows? Either way, I enjoy dreaming.
All these thoughts and details gave me new perspective as I read a few verses from Proverbs the other day:
By wisdom a house is built. and by understanding it is established; and by knowledge the rooms are filled with all precious and pleasant riches.
A House is Built
So to start off, a house is built by wisdom. It’s not thrown together haphazardly, but rather carefully and methodically. You have to have a picture of the finished result in mind so that you know the direction you want to take things.
And I’m sure there’s so much more to the actual design and planning that goes into the building of the house. This is one of those things that I don’t know what I don’t know – but I’m sure it is quite a bit!
But what if we were to take this analogy and apply it to a life? By wisdom a life is built… It is not enough to just build a house or live a life, we must have a plan, we must seek good counsel, we must give our best – all the time.
When building a house, it’s not enough to do our best most the time and then become lazy during the HVAC installation – if we did that then we wouldn’t have reliable air conditioning. Life is the exact same way. It’s not enough to do well most of the time, just to goof off once in a while. Just as every part of construction represents the finished result of the house, every choice we make represents who God is in our life. And it is our Christian duty to represent Him well!
By Understanding
…by understanding it is established…. We’re back to the house. It’s not enough to just build a house, but we must establish it with understanding. Another translation reads, “it becomes strong with good sense“.
Becomes strong with good sense, that paints such a picture, doesn’t it? In addition to building a house with wisdom you must establish a good foundation within this house. Perhaps this is the literal foundation while the home is under construction, but I can’t help but think it is also the usage of this house.
Do you honor God with this house? Do you work to strengthen your understanding and fine tune your good sense based on God’s Word and prayer? Some people think their house is their own, they can do what they want. But I think this is just another area to honor God. It is extra important to check your motivation and conscience when no one is looking or would necessarily know.
Let’s take this as an analogy also and apply it to life – by understanding it is established; or becomes strong through good sense. It is vital that we are constantly sharpening one another and holding a higher standard to represent God well. We become strong – or established – by focusing on Him and studying His Word. He is the only constant in our life, every other thing and person will come and go.
As we work to build a life wisely, let us remember to keep our eyes focused on God so that we may grow and be well established.
By Knowledge
…by knowledge the rooms are filled with all precious and pleasant riches.” How about that?! Once you’ve built and established this home properly, it’s not enough for the rooms in your house to have some precious and pleasant riches or a few precious and pleasant riches. But rather, the rooms are filled! Not just a room or two – but the rooms.
Perhaps there are two takeaways here – on the one hand, I think it sounds beautifully and tastefully decorated! Not lackluster or unsightly. But also, I think this isn’t necessarily only about monetary riches. Rather about things of value that money can’t buy – peace, comfort, inspiration, etc.
It takes knowledge to apply these things well. Knowledge helps you decorate well and coordinate colors and designs. But knowledge also helps you realize the deeper meaning of what you have when your house is built on wisdom and established with understanding.
And isn’t the same true about life? By knowledge {life} is filled with all sorts of precious and pleasant riches. When we embrace God’s Word, when we see living a Godly life as direction and protection, it helps us to better appreciate the incredible gift God has given us.
Perspective is vitally important! One can either see the Christian lifestyle as God-honoring and full of limitless possibilities or as a bunch of rules that are too strict and unrealistic to keep.
Houses and Lives
In conclusion, a house – much like life – is built on wisdom, established on understanding, and overflows when knowledge is added to the mix.
Much like building a house has so many vitally important details to get a reliable finished result, life is a disaster without applying God’s Word and guidance. The world would tell you the little things in life don’t matter, but the world lies. Everything matters and it is our Christian duty to give God our best in every area of our lives.
May God inspire you today to commit to giving Him your all and everything and living a life that represents Him remarkably well! When this is truly our heart and our focus, there are limitless possibilities of where He might take us!
Until Next Time!
Hope.
PS. Don’t you love when Scripture is revealed to you in new ways?! Keep reading: https://www.theamericanlady.com/2021/08/11/faith-can-move-mountains/