13
A Purse with Holes in it
Then the word of the Lord came through the prophet Haggai: “Is it a time for you yourselves to be living in your paneled houses, while this house remains a ruin?” Now this is what the Lord Almighty says: “Give careful thought to your ways. You have planted much, but harvested little. You eat, but never have enough. You drink, but never have your fill. You put on clothes, but are not warm. You earn wages, only to put them in a purse with holes in it.”
Haggai 1:3-6
Have you ever been a part of something which wasn’t planned out very well?
A school play, a talent show? A cross country road trip? How did it the road trip go? Did you end up on the side of the road with a broken down car because you didn’t get the engine checked before you left, or you ran out of gas after you got lost in the middle of nowhere because the map on your phone had spotty reception. With any plan that ends in failure, the one thing we can take away from it is that success requires careful planning. Benjamin Franklin said it like this: “If you’re failing to plan, you’re planning to fail.” Starting a business, getting married, taking a trip, starting a family, creating a workout regiment: All of these will most likely either succeed or fail based on the planning and amount of thought you’re willing to put into the endeavor before you even start. How you start is usually how you end, and that directly impacts the legacy you leave behind.
Today’s passage is from the Old Testament book of Haggai. Haggai was a prophet who, along with Zechariah, encouraged the Jewish people to rebuild the temple which had been destroyed by the Babylonians under King Nebuchadnezzar around 586 B.C. The Jewish people had been allowed to return to Israel under King Darius and were quick to build the walls of the city, but then grew apathetic and failed to complete the rebuilding of the temple. God used Haggai as a warning and a wake-up call to the Jews that there would be consequences if they continued to elevate their own houses over the house of the Lord. When the prophet says, “give careful thought to your ways”, he is basically saying, “I want you all to think really long and hard about your priorities and what really matters.” The same is true of us today. Each one of us needs to stop and give careful thought to our priorities to see if those priorities really are in alignment with Gods. The Jews simply got distracted from building God’s house because they were so consumed with building their own houses. They were so busy building, planting, eating, drinking, and doing life that they failed to see that it was all in vain if God was not at the center of it all.
How relevant is this passage to our culture today? It’s never been easier to become consumed with our careers, our kids, sports, entertainment, vacations, savings, retirement, home renovations, and education. So easy, in fact, that the things of God continue to fall further and further down the priority scale. All of the things mentioned are good things, but often it is good things that prevent us from receiving the best things. There will be consequences in your own life if this trend continues. You may not notice it at first, but soon, like the Jews, you’ll see that there becomes a drop-off in your harvest. Your returns aren’t what they used to be. What used to fulfill you doesn’t fulfill you anymore. You earn money but never seem to have enough. You lose contentment with what you have, and what you do earn seems like you’re putting it in a purse with holes in it. This can be frustrating because on a purely physical level, it seems like you’re doing all the right things. You’re working hard, being diligent, disciplined and checking off your to-do list. You’re taking care of the people you love and trying to do the best you can in life. The problem is that although you are successful in doing all the right things on a physical level, the spiritual component of your planning is actually leading you further away from the true desires of your heart. Instead of walking in the blessing of God, you are actually walking in a curse. It’s like trying to swim upstream, and many people grow frustrated and apathetic towards life as a result of not living life according to Gods design.
We read in Matthew 6:33 that it is only by putting God first that he will grant you the desires of your heart. When we choose to invest our lives into temporal things, then that is our reward; temporary joy and happiness. But when we choose to invest our lives into eternal things, then our reward will also be lasting joy and contentment.
Let’s be people who leave a legacy of planning well with God at the center of all we do!
A school play, a talent show? A cross country road trip? How did it the road trip go? Did you end up on the side of the road with a broken down car because you didn’t get the engine checked before you left, or you ran out of gas after you got lost in the middle of nowhere because the map on your phone had spotty reception. With any plan that ends in failure, the one thing we can take away from it is that success requires careful planning. Benjamin Franklin said it like this: “If you’re failing to plan, you’re planning to fail.” Starting a business, getting married, taking a trip, starting a family, creating a workout regiment: All of these will most likely either succeed or fail based on the planning and amount of thought you’re willing to put into the endeavor before you even start. How you start is usually how you end, and that directly impacts the legacy you leave behind.
Today’s passage is from the Old Testament book of Haggai. Haggai was a prophet who, along with Zechariah, encouraged the Jewish people to rebuild the temple which had been destroyed by the Babylonians under King Nebuchadnezzar around 586 B.C. The Jewish people had been allowed to return to Israel under King Darius and were quick to build the walls of the city, but then grew apathetic and failed to complete the rebuilding of the temple. God used Haggai as a warning and a wake-up call to the Jews that there would be consequences if they continued to elevate their own houses over the house of the Lord. When the prophet says, “give careful thought to your ways”, he is basically saying, “I want you all to think really long and hard about your priorities and what really matters.” The same is true of us today. Each one of us needs to stop and give careful thought to our priorities to see if those priorities really are in alignment with Gods. The Jews simply got distracted from building God’s house because they were so consumed with building their own houses. They were so busy building, planting, eating, drinking, and doing life that they failed to see that it was all in vain if God was not at the center of it all.
How relevant is this passage to our culture today? It’s never been easier to become consumed with our careers, our kids, sports, entertainment, vacations, savings, retirement, home renovations, and education. So easy, in fact, that the things of God continue to fall further and further down the priority scale. All of the things mentioned are good things, but often it is good things that prevent us from receiving the best things. There will be consequences in your own life if this trend continues. You may not notice it at first, but soon, like the Jews, you’ll see that there becomes a drop-off in your harvest. Your returns aren’t what they used to be. What used to fulfill you doesn’t fulfill you anymore. You earn money but never seem to have enough. You lose contentment with what you have, and what you do earn seems like you’re putting it in a purse with holes in it. This can be frustrating because on a purely physical level, it seems like you’re doing all the right things. You’re working hard, being diligent, disciplined and checking off your to-do list. You’re taking care of the people you love and trying to do the best you can in life. The problem is that although you are successful in doing all the right things on a physical level, the spiritual component of your planning is actually leading you further away from the true desires of your heart. Instead of walking in the blessing of God, you are actually walking in a curse. It’s like trying to swim upstream, and many people grow frustrated and apathetic towards life as a result of not living life according to Gods design.
We read in Matthew 6:33 that it is only by putting God first that he will grant you the desires of your heart. When we choose to invest our lives into temporal things, then that is our reward; temporary joy and happiness. But when we choose to invest our lives into eternal things, then our reward will also be lasting joy and contentment.
Let’s be people who leave a legacy of planning well with God at the center of all we do!