The Joy of Serving the LORD
“Besides, in my devotion to the temple of my God I now give my personal treasures of gold and silver for the temple of my God, over and above everything I have provided for this holy temple…
The people rejoiced… they had given freely and wholeheartedly to the LORD. David the king also rejoiced greatly.” (1Chr 29:3,9)
You are warmly welcome!
Longlasting structures are not built with strong materials; they are built with passionate devotion. This season we come to build together to accomplish a vital phase in the Kakumba Chapel Hall complex, and what makes it sustainable for generations is the love and devotion with which we worship and give. We are here today basking in the great work of those who were here before us: they loved and they gave. I gratefully acknowledge my predecessor Chaplains and the clergy and laity who served with them. It’s our turn today to generously express our passionate love and devotion to God.
As we face our building projects, we should be greatly inspired by the passionate devotion we see in King David’s testimony before his retirement: he conducted a successful fundraising from his subjects, but went a mile ahead to express his personal devotion to God by prodigally giving precious personal treasures for the construction of the holy temple. Two important lessons stand out from David’s testimony and actions: first, a sustainable project requires generosity, and giving the most precious of our possessions. Secondly, deep devotion to God makes our growth not only sustainable here on earth but also brings eternal rewards; see how we read about David today – thousands of years later, but more so to know that there is eternal life promised to those who love the Lord with all their heart – that is the highest level of sustainability that in turn brings lasting joy.
The temple that was constructed using these resources stood magnificently and remained physically strong for centuries, but could only be sustained by the people’s devotion to God. When they and their leaders went astray and forsook the LORD and refused to repent after many calls by prophets, the temple collapsed. For centuries it stood robustly, but those same strong materials could not sustain the temple when the devotion to God was gone. Longlasting structures are not built with strong materials; they are built with passionate devotion.
In his dedication prayer, King Solomon acknowledged that God does not dwell in small temples built with human hands; nonetheless, he prayed that God accept and put his name in the temple – and this could only be possible when devoted people continued in faithful worship and obedience (2Chr 6:18-20). Let us by all means bring the money, the gifts, the materials and all that will build this place; and let us grow our devotion to God – in worship and in fellowship; our projects will truly be sustainable and our lives sustained to eternity – to eternal peace and joy.
God bless you all.