Build Me Up, Buttercup
Do you know how to build a house? Having worked on a few different service projects and mission trips I have definitely participated in parts of building a house, but I do not know if I could start from a blank piece of land and end up with a dwelling that was safe to inhabit at the end. Most of us know something about home repair, but I would posit that most people, no matter how knowledgeable they are about general things, would not know how to build a house. Throw in that there is a regional component to this in addition to different standards and expectations globally and suddenly, your building method becomes a big deal.
If you were to build a home, what sort of foundation would you use? Would you hire the labor or do it all yourself? Do you know enough about electricity and plumbing to start a system from scratch? What sort of roof would you put on? At what pitch? Would you insulate your interior walls? What sort of material would you use for framing? Does the length of your nails in framing matter? How do you install a window or door? How big is your home going to be? How many bedrooms will you need? Do you want an open concept? What is the right building method for the climate of your region? What sort of pipes are you going to use? Where is the water source? What sort of siding will you use? Will you paint it? Are you more of a wallpaper person? How many levels? Will there be stairs to your front door? Will you have a deck? It can be absolutely overwhelming to answer even one of these questions, so let’s go with something a little more approachable.
When I think about building methods, the first thing that comes to mind for me is LEGO. As someone who likes to take my time, lay out the pieces, follow every instruction carefully, I look with some combination of envy, amazement, and disgust at those who follow a chaos building method. Modern LEGO sets involve numbered bags and thick instruction booklets. In my childhood, the bag was one big bag, so I liked to double check I had all the pieces before I got started on whatever I was supposed to be building out of that LEGO set. Those who can use the chaos method are better candidates to be innovators or master builders because they typically don’t need the instructions for every little step. They know what they are doing or try something just to see what it looks like or if it will work. The method I use is very risk averse. There’s no disappointment if a piece is missing because you simply do not start without it.
I realize I have failed to describe the chaos method. You simply open all of the packages at once creating a large pile of LEGO bricks and pieces that you then build from. Variations include tossing away the instruction booklet and only looking at the picture on the box, building anything you want from the pieces regardless of the intention of the set, and adding additional pieces. Again, this is not a bad method, just not how I build LEGO.
And like most things, this article isn’t really about building, houses, or LEGO. When we think about life and control, we often want to be the one making all the decisions. Wisdom tells us that we will not always be able to control things. As someone who is risk averse, I like to know the variables for a situation. But as I preached a few weeks ago, the only person I can truly control is myself. I cannot control the weather, what other people do, or what will happen next in life. None of us can. So, what do we do?
Well, we trust that God is working for good in all things. Bad news, disappointment, disaster, God will still be present there with abundant grace, steadfast love, and a way forward. Seeking God’s will in tough times is a standard for faithful people. Our faith serves as a firm foundation that gives us somewhere to start.
“Everyone, then, who hears these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock. The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall because it had been founded on rock. And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not act on them will be like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell—and great was its fall!” (Matthew 7:24-27 NRSVUE)
What else can we do? We can build each other up. We can offer each other words of encouragement. We can choose to offer kindness and graciousness. We can work with each other instead of against each other. We can look for God’s will over our will. We can trust that help will come. We can listen to wisdom and follow it.
This week as storms continue to rage, especially in Florida, we lift up the people who will soon know more about how to build a house. We continue to pray for all our neighbors here in Valley View who are having to make the sort of overwhelming decisions about building and finding a home. We lift up others who want to cling to control or feel as if they have lost all control. May God be with us all, building us up, guiding us forward, and offering us grace.
