In Ecclesiastes, there is a familiar scripture that defines the many different seasons in our lives.
For everything there is a season,
a time for every activity under heaven.
A time to be born and a time to die.
A time to plant and a time to harvest.
A time to kill and a time to heal.
A time to tear down and a time to build up.
A time to cry and a time to laugh.
A time to grieve and a time to dance.
A time to scatter stones and a time to gather stones.
A time to embrace and a time to turn away.
A time to search and a time to quit searching.
A time to keep and a time to throw away.
A time to tear and a time to mend.
A time to be quiet and a time to speak.
A time to love and a time to hate.
A time for war and a time for peace.Ecclesiastes 3:1-8
The past decade has been one of tearing down. As we followed the Lord and what He had laid out before us, we went on a journey of tearing down strongholds, mindsets, structures and systems. It was a season of uprooting and deep healing in our hearts and minds so that our spirits could take the lead. It was hard, but it was incredible! We learned how to relate to our Father as healer, comforter, the One who knows and loves every part of our soul. We built trust that if He sees something in us that could cause us to believe we’re separate from Him in any way, He will - with a fierce and passionate love - come after it.
We developed tools and strategies that can now quickly and confidently be used as we continue on our way. What once took days, months, years to identify and deal with can now be seen and handled with honed skill in our own lives and in others. It was a beautiful time in the Kingdom, leaning close to the King and hearing His voice establish our identities through the unwinding and unwrapping of who we are not.
Now, as we stand before a new era, the tide has turned and we are called to hold our sword in one hand to fight, and a hammer in the other to build. (Nehemiah 4:17) A time of great building is upon us! This means we learn how to use new tools on top of our old weapons, we learn how to keep our eyes on the Master Builder who will alert us if something needs to be dealt with. There’s a shift in how we relate to God who wants to reveal to us His nature as the Master Builder. Expect God to speak to you in a new way! Expect growth, expect harvest, expect the Lord to lift your head from looking within to looking to the horizon. There is a Kingdom to build and it’s the time to discover what that looks like in your sphere of influence.
In a season of building, it’s important that we are building with the proper material on the foundation that has been established on Jesus Christ in the last season.
Because of God’s grace to me, I have laid the foundation like an expert builder. Now others are building on it. But whoever is building on this foundation must be very careful. For no one can lay any foundation other than the one we already have - Jesus Christ.
Anyone who builds on that foundation may use a variety of materials - gold, silver, jewels, wood, hay, or straw. But on the judgement day, fire will reveal what kind of work each builder has done. The fire will show if a person’s work has any value. If the work survives, that builder will receive a reward. But if the works is burned up, the builder will suffer great loss. The builder will be saved, but like someone barely escaping through a wall of flames.
1 Cor. 3:10 - 15
Let’s be in the word like never before to allow Holy Spirit to reveal the new building materials He wants to deliver to us and teach us how to use. What are the gold, silver, and jewels that Paul is talking about in the scriptures? We believe this is part of the revelation that is to come in this new era.
We ask that the Holy Spirit would tune our ears to have a keen awareness as we hold our swords and hammers, positioned and awaiting your direction.