“But now, do consider from this day onward: before one stone was placed on another in the temple of the Lord, from that time when one came to a grain heap of twenty measures, there would be only ten; and when one came to the wine vat to draw fifty measures, there would be only twenty.” (Haggai 2:15-16 NASB)
Unlike so many of the prophets in the Bible who prophesied about the destruction of Jerusalem and Israel, the prophet Haggai’s ministry occurred after the Jews had already returned to the land of Judah. And while prophets before the fall of Jerusalem were primarily speaking out against idolatry, Haggai’s message cut deeply into a different but critically crippling condition: Apathy!
You see, the people were happy to be back in their land, and they set to work immediately rebuilding their farms, their homes, their lives… There was, in fact, only one thing they didn’t set to work rebuilding: The temple of God! And the two short chapters of the book of Haggai record the Lord’s efforts through the prophet Haggai to motivate the people to … care about their God more than they cared about their fields!
I wish I could say that the problem of apathy, the problem of putting our own needs ahead of the work of the Lord, was only a “before Christ” kind of problem. Unfortunately, it spans the generations and is especially prevalent in our own. However, it’s perfectly natural, right? We get busy! Often there are major life changes after we make commitments, necessitating that we break those commitments. Anyone in ministry knows exactly what I’m talking about: People accept to volunteer for this ministry or that one; but weeks or months later, life changes dictate that they let those self-same responsibilities slide. Maybe they suddenly have to move. Or maybe there are changes to their health, or their caregiving responsibilities intensify. Maybe they had a scheduling change at work…
I don’t necessarily think that the Jews who returned to Jerusalem after the Babylonian captivity lacked the desire to rebuild the temple; they simply lacked the time! Their land hadn’t been worked in 70 years. Fields had overgrown, markers were buried, homes had fallen to waste. If they were going to make it, they had to take care of their land, and they had to make sure their homes were suitable for their families. Who can blame them?
This story teaches us an invaluable lesson about the way God works. You see, the fields that were getting such tender, loving care weren’t producing! Haggai 2 tells us that instead of receiving twenty measures of grain, they only received ten; and the wine vats that should have drawn fifty servings only yielded twenty. Now any farmer can attest that this means he needs to work even harder in his fields! There simply isn’t any time to rebuild the temple!
God, however, uses this situation to teach a lesson that even today His people would do well to pay attention to. God tells the people through Haggai that the reason their fields aren’t producing is that He stopped them from it: “I struck you and every work of your hands with scorching wind, mildew, and hail…” (Haggai 2:17a NASB).
Wait. Why would God do that?
Haggai explains this in the second half of the same verse: “…yet you did not come back to Me,’ declares the Lord.” (Haggai 2:17b NASB). God is trying to get their attention, and what better way than to allow some disaster?
What God wanted was their undivided attention, and He was willing to bless the people if they will just give it to Him: “Do consider from this day onward, from the twenty-fourth day of the ninth month; from the day when the temple of the Lord was founded, consider: Is the seed still in the barn? Even including the vine, the fig tree, the pomegranate, and the olive tree, it has not produced fruit. Yet from this day on I will bless you.” (Haggai 2:18,19 NASB).
Here is what God is saying: If the people would simply put their priorities on God, then God would take care of all of their other needs! From that same day the people turned their attention to building God’s temple, God promises to bless their fields and their harvest!
What does this have to do with the 21st century Christian?
Just this: Whatever it is that God has called you to do, you must do it with all of your heart, soul, mind and spirit. You must not let anything distract you from the work He has called you to do until the day that He lifts the responsibility from your shoulders. For when you put God’s work first, He promises to take care of the rest!
I wish I had a record of the thousands of times I’ve been too busy to write a devotional. Each time, whatever it is that is so important takes twice to three times as long as it should, and generally, it is a disaster. But the times I’ve put aside the distractions, no matter how vital they are, and focused on writing, or whatever else it is that God has called me to do, all of those “important” things just seem to do themselves!
Another great example of this is giving of our resources to the Lord. Again, I wish I had a record of all the times God has told me to give over and above what I can afford to give; and when I do, suddenly I find all this money coming into my bank account from unexpected sources! When we give God from the top, without worrying about whether or not we’ll have enough for the month, we always have enough, and often even a surplus. That’s because when we put our attention on what God calls us to do, He will make sure we have enough!
I would like to give you the Haggai challenge today. Whatever it is that God has called you to do, do it with all your heart, mind, soul and spirit. Do it first. Make it your top priority. Especially in challenging times! For when you make God’s work your priority, He will not only supply your needs, but will give you an abundance!
In His love,
Lyn
Lynona Gordon Chaffart
Author, Moderator, Acting Director, Answers2Prayer Ministries
