God's Contractor

You (all) are God's house. By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as an expert builder, and someone else is building on it. . . . Take particular care in picking out your building materials. Eventually there is going to be an inspection. If you use cheap or inferior materials, you'll be found out. . . . If your work passes inspection, fine; if it doesn't, your part of the building will be torn out and started over. (1 Cor. 3:9-15 NIV/Message)

This passage of Scripture speaks to me. It reminds me that God's business is the ultimate business, and that whatever a good businessman would invest to build a great company, God's church deserves at least that kind of investment. It really peeves me when people who have the potential to do a lot better think small and shabby when it comes to the church of the living God! But who cares what I think? What does God think? The passage above tells me--surprise, surprise--that God expects first-rate, top quality work. His Kingdom deserves our attention to best practices.

Church leadership is a heavy responsibility. We're contractors, so to speak, hired by God. We're working on the same building. This isn't a competition but a team effort. We better give it our best. If we seek popularity by simply being trendy, putting up an impressive front to mask our actual shallowness, all of our work is eventually going to be shown for what it is.

This also tells me that it's not just my work that needs to be quality. As a leader, I've got to motivate my people to do the same. It's the Temple of God we're building! There's no place for sloppy, mediocre, or "good enough." Do it right and do it big!

Jesus, with your help I can be a master builder. I'll give you my very best. Please bring the best people, the best co-leaders, the best resources to me so that the work we do will please you.