Striving Versus Abiding

Unless the Lord builds the house, its builders labor in vain.

 

Psalm 127:1a

What does it mean for the Lord to build the house?

 

It almost seems a contradiction when we consider this passage, but in fact God wants us to allow Him to build the house. As we read the rest of the above verse and into the second verse we get a better understanding of what He is wanting to convey:

Unless the Lord builds the house, its builders labor in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the watchmen stand guard in vain. In vain you rise early and stay up late, toiling for food to eat for He grants sleep to those He loves (Psalm 127:1-2).

 

God is telling us there is a way of working—conducting business without sweating and toiling—without striving and instead abiding. His warning to each of us is to avoid thinking that outcome is based on our sweat and toil, when in fact outcome is based on obedience. That outcome is sometimes more than we deserve and sometimes it is less than we hoped for. But regardless, His desire for each of us is to see Him working in our daily work life.

 

God wants us to avoid our own effort to gain an outcome.

One day Jesus called out to Peter from the shore of the lake and suggested he throw his net on the other side of the boat. It was this simple act of obedience that yielded a tremendous catch that he would not have received unless he obeyed.

We are called to work and God will bring forth the fruit.

 
We need to ask God daily to show us the difference between striving and abiding for an outcome. It can be challenging for us to balance this in our daily work experience, but God wants to help us walk in this freedom and rest.