Thursday, November 24, 2016

The Construction Phases of God

When you hear the word “construction,” what comes to your mind?  Is it; delays, impatience, frustration, irritations, or amazement of seeing the progress every time you pass that way to work.  Whatever goes through your mind, one thing we can all agree on is that it can be a nuisance when you are in a rush to go somewhere, only to be delayed by the “road work.”

Over the last ten years, on the route I take to work, I have witnessed two different housing developments being built from scratch.  Of course the beginning stage was seeing all the bulldozers, dump trucks, and other equipment digging up the ground and taking away the dirt.  This went on for a while, and this was my route to work and I had to expect delays or take another route which would have been longer. 

Most people get stuck in the beginning phase of God’s construction process.  He shows us visions, dreams, prophetic words of what He is doing in our lives and business; but the initial stage of any new project can often be the most painful.  This is where I see so many lose hope.  Why are we still in this phase?  When are we going to move forward to something that is fun or at least doesn’t require much pressure?  Before the men can start building, they must break up the ground, turn over the soil, and tear up the existing streets around it, before they can lay down new foundation.  Everything I just mentioned requires pressure to make this happen.  That is why I see all the dump trucks and bulldozers; heavy machinery for a heavy job.  There is a major parallel to the steps of building a new development to the steps required to building a NEW YOU!

Phase 1 – Breaking up the old. When the men first start, you have no idea what they are building.  All you see is one big field that has to go through a major overhaul.  The Bible tells us that Jesus was able to endure the process because the joy that was set before Him.  Jesus saw the bigger picture, so He was able to endure the cross which was the route He had to take for becoming our great High Priest.  It was not a skip in the park process for Jesus and because He is our example, you have to know it will not be a skip in the park process for you.  Jeremiah 1 tells us that when God is the head foreman for our construction project, then He must root out, pull down, destroy, throw down before He can begin to build and plant.  Old, negative, erroneous, faulty and wounded paradigms in our soul and thinking must be eradicated before phase 2 can begin.  The ground and concrete never fight back with the construction workers, but we make this process hard because we fight what God is breaking.

Phase 2 – Repaving the road for the new.  Once the men break up the previous ground, they begin to repave the adjoining streets based on the new layout and diagrams.  As you see, not one house has been built yet, we are still working on the surrounding areas.  We may have a deep desire to work with the youth, women, abused, men, ex-offenders, etc.; or you know you are called to the ministry but before God can build that part of you; He works on all the surrounding areas.  All the roads that will lead them to what He is building.  We don’t always know what that looks like, but we have to trust the God who is the head of this construction project.  If you have a problem with trusting God, it will make phase 1 harder because that wounded paradigm hasn’t been broken yet.  Present your hurts and wounds to God as a sacrifice of surrender so what God is bringing you into won’t be corrupted by the old places in you.

Phase 3 – Laying the new foundation.  Now the men are ready to start laying the foundation for the homes in that new development.  I remember when I added a new back room in my office; I saw the layers that were required for the foundation stage.  It was only a small space, but what went underneath the ground was more important than what we admire when we see the finished product.  Today many people want to be the final product without paying the price for all the materials needed in the foundation stage.  As a prophet positioned in the marketplace that’s also a pastor, I’m called to awaken the church out of her sleep and train the army of God for Kingdom assignment.  I have seen many things.  Most people who complain about the church saying they are not teaching, or know that there is more out there other than what they have experienced are the same ones who fight phase 1. If you are ever going to be the new design that God is going to use in the Earth, you MUST go through every phase.  Fighting what God has already pre-ordained for your life, will eventually hurt you.  You can’t run from your foreman, no matter how many ways you try.

Phase 4 – Framing – Drywall – Rough In.   At this stage you get a little more excited because you can see it starting to come together.  You have a visual of what the rooms will look like.  You can picture it painted and decorated, but it is still many more stages that a contractor has to do to get it ready for you to move in.  You never want to get to a place where you start skipping steps because it looks like you are there.  This is why we have so many people building ministries and businesses that have that form of godliness, but got ahead of the foreman’s schedule for their life.  If we begin to skip steps in the building process, then when the climate changes and strong winds, rain or snow hits your neighborhood it could possible bring about damage because it could not withstand the pressure of the elements.  It is the same thing with what we are doing.  Many people are doing things “in the name of God” but didn’t allow God to build it the way He intended it to be built.  So eventually they fizzle out because they can no longer maintain their momentum or what they built begins to wither away.  James 1 says to let patience have her perfect work.  God knows what He is building and the many storms that will come and you need to be solid enough to withstand every season you will face.

Phase 5 – The finishing touches.  Did you realize that different people would come in with their specialties and make the home you live in complete?  You need the plumber, electrical, HVAC, flooring, carpentry, roofer, etc.  When the contractor is working, he will have to rough in different sections for the other specialties to do what they need to do and then the contractor can complete his portion.  The Bible says He that has begun a good work knows how to complete it to its fruition.  No matter what stage you are in, God knows how to get you to the final product.  Finishing touches can be things like, your character, the smell you release when you speak, and the motives being purified.  We sometimes focus so much on our gifts, talents and persona; that we often forget that God is dealing with the heart and motives and the smell you release in His presence. 

Be blessed by this word and understand God is at the helm of your life.