Read Psalm 127

We have seen that if God is not in the building then the building is in vain.  The watchman will do his duty, but if God is not with him the enemy will come from a different direction or he will miss some little detail and the city will suffer attack.  How can I be sure that God is involved?  From different Biblical building sites we can find our answer.

A. Set your heart and soul to seek the Lord.

This is what David told Solomon: Set your heart and soul to seek the Lord your God; arise therefore and build the sanctuary (1 Chron 22:19). First seek God.  Don't be in a big hurry to build. 

B. Strengthen your hands for the work.

Nehemiah first told the people how the hand of God had been on him (i.e. God was in it).  Then it says they strengthened their hands for this good work (Neh. 2:18).  Even in training our children we must be willing to be prepared or trained.  A parent will seek to strengthen his hand from his own upbringing, but also from the Scriptures which have much to say on the subject, and then from the advice and example of others.

C. Seek the Lord in prayer.

In Scripture prayers were regularly offered in the context of building.  Nehemiah prayed at the beginning and during the building of the walls.  In Psalm 51:18 David, as part of his prayer of confession, asked God to rebuild what David, by his immoral example, had torn down.  If you want God in it, ask Him to be in it.

D. Stand the building on the foundation of Christ.

An essential issue in building anything that lasts is that it have a good foundation (Matt. 7:24-27).  In our spiritual buildings the foundation is always Christ (1 Cor. 3:11).  In fact the Bible says that what Christ is doing today is building His Church (Matt. 16:18).  When Christ is the foundation of our homes then our homes are part of what He is doing.  This happens when Christ is Lord of the marriage and then of the life of the family.

E. Establish the building with the word of grace.

According to Acts 20:28 the word of grace is able to build you up.  God is brought into the building of our homes when His Word is brought into the home. Like Timothy (2 Tim 1:5; 3:14-15) whose mother and grandmother taught him the Scriptures from his childhood, and as commanded in the law (Deut. 6:4-9) so the word of grace brings God into all He has given us to do.