Beautiful Hearts!

 

In our ‘Thoughts for the week’ we haven’t particularly spoken about the new building work going on at our church, but I was looking at a passage in the Book of the Prophet Micah which really spoke to me about the wider project.
 
The verses that stood out for me were written about 700 years BC but seemed really relevant for today. In Micah 7:11-12 it says, “The day for building your walls  will come, the day for extending your boundaries. In that day people will come to you ……”
 
Looking at these verses in my Bible there is a margin note to cross-reference with Isaiah 54:11-14. Now these verses talk about the beauty and quality of our Heavenly home and describes it as having, “Stones of turquoise” and “Foundations of sapphires” and goes on to talk about “Battlements of rubies” and “Walls of precious stones”. What an incredible picture of a place of love, praise and worship!
 
The thought I want to share with you is this; do we see our buildings as being built like this? Of course, if they were, the costs would go out of control and it could never be built like that ….. or could it?
 
You see, our building will be of ordinary bricks, windows, doors, concrete reinforced beams, glass etc. but what about us, the people, for we are the building blocks of the church. Are we people whose faces shine like precious stones, whose lives are a beautiful reflection of our Heavenly Father’s love?
 
We can have a fancy building, wonderfully built and constructed, but it really comes down to us; are our hearts a beautiful offering to God? The building will inspire and encourage us and will be a beacon of light and hope to all those who will come. The verse in Micah 7:12 says, “They will come”. Will they see just a building, or a beautiful building bringing a glimpse of Heaven to earth because it is shining through you and me with God’s love?