“Kevin, give some thought to what you are doing, or you will lose a hand or poke your eye out,” were my words to Kevin Jr. Recently, my son and I were at Scioto Hills a Christian Camp located in Ohio, with an organization called Alpha Chi on an annual retreat. I currently serve as their advisor. He is 13. As we were splitting, hauling, and stacking wood, I wanted him to be careful and cautious. So often, we do things aimlessly. We do things without much thought. We say things without much thought. However, we need to think. Think about our actions, words, and deeds.
God thinks. However, Isaiah 55:8-9 reminds us, that God’s thoughts are not our thoughts. His thoughts are far better than our thoughts. As a matter of fact, his mind is far superior to ours. His thoughtful consistency is far better than ours. His thoughts are always pure, always, good, always right, always considering us and others. That is why it is important for us to have the mind of Christ to govern our thoughts. Even now, as I write, my thoughts are not solely focused on Him, however, he is focused on me.
God knows us, loves us, cares for us, and thought enough of us to send His Son to die for us. He thought enough about us to plan for us to get back to him before we were born. God thinks carefully. So should we. To consider our ways, we must think. Thinking can be worship when directed toward God and his purposes. Thinking is worship. Think about God. Think about His goodness. Think about His patience. Think about His magnificence. Think about His Infiniteness.
Haggai encouraged his contemporary audience and now us to think. The Lord is speaking to Haggai at a time when God’s people should have been thinking about God, focusing on God, His temple, His glory, and His people. Nonetheless, the people focused on themselves and were clearly not considering their ways. This is an amazing warning to us. The temptation is to focus on ourselves and the things that are central to us. As believers, we must make a habit out of thinking about God and thinking about others. I am not saying this is an easy thing to do. Have you watched TV lately? About every commercial is about self-indulgence, self-improvement, or self-fulfillment. Just because something is spread through media does not mean it is good for the Christian.
The Lord tells us in Haggai 1:5, 1:7, 2:15, and 2:18 (CSB) “Think carefully about your ways.” He is asking the reader to consider all the things that have not fallen in place for them because they have not focused on Him. They were working, but their work was fruitless. I pose a few questions for us to consider: “Am I thinking carefully about my ways?” Am I thinking about the cadence of my life? Am I thinking about the activities I say “yes” or “no” to? Am I thinking about eternity as I spend my time? Am I thinking about God? We should think. The rebuke God laid upon the people was not because they did work that benefited themselves, but because they neglected the work of the temple, and by doing so prioritized themselves over God.
Maybe the Lord does not need you to physically build your church. Yet, you should be doing the work of building the church. It is essential for us to serve the Lord through the local church. Think carefully. Are your thoughts and works more focused on building your own kingdom or the Kingdom of God? Is your “to-do’ filled with things that are only satisfying your desires or the commands of the Kingdom? The Lord is kind. He showed his kindness by stirring the spirit of many. In Haggai 1:14, we see the Spirit of the LORD rousing the people and the people responding. In short, God does all the work.
Today his Spirit dwells in us. Yes, the same power that raised Jesus from the dead is living in you and me. I pray today you consider your ways and allow the Spirit of the LORD to encourage you to begin work for the LORD. Think carefully about who called you, who keeps you, and who promised to deliver you to the Father. He is the triune God. You do not have to work alone. One of the greatest encouragements in Haggai is found in 2:4, “this is the LORD’s declaration. Work! For I am with you.” Think carefully about the Lord’s declaration. Think carefully about your ways. Think carefully about God. Work, for He is with you.
By Kevin Jones
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