1 Kings 5:5
And, behold, I purpose to build an house unto the name of the LORD my God, as the LORD spake unto David my father, saying, Thy son, whom I will set upon thy throne in thy room, he shall build an house unto my name.
Solomon had been king for a short time, and his first agenda was to build a house for the LORD. He said, I purpose to build. Solomon’s whole focus was to build the temple of the LORD. We love that he succeeded in building the magnificent temple, but that temple would have just been a conversation had he not purposed to build it. The purpose to build drove his mind, actions, and focus so that he could complete what he started to do.
There is nothing wrong with having a desire to build something. One reason so many do nothing with their life is because they are satisfied with the status quo. I was driving to make a visit with one of my staff members, and we saw a homeless man sitting with two dogs in the median. I looked at that man who just sat there and said to my staff member, “I wonder what is even going through this man’s mind.” I said, there is likely nothing that is going through this man’s mind because he has no purpose for living. I mentioned that even in my downtime, my mind is thinking about projects and how to better build my church for God.
My friend, life is empty if you have no purpose. Those with no purpose in life find sin’s invitation at every crossroad. If purpose does not fill one’s mind, sin will take its place. It is critical to your Christian walk that you get a dream to build something for God. Let me share some thoughts about building something for God.
First, you will never build unless you purpose to build. Purpose is the catalyst to building. Purpose gives focus and determination. One reason so few people have focus is because they have no purpose for their life. There ought to be something you are trying to build for God. You can always have a purpose to build another person to do something for God. If you go soul winning, you can have a purpose to help an individual become a faithful soul winning believer. The bus captain must purpose to build their bus route. The Sunday school teacher must purpose to build their class. The pastor must purpose to build his church. Anyone who has built something in life for God has always purposed to build something before they built it. You cannot separate purpose from being successful in building.
Second, don’t just build, but build to your purpose. Have a purpose for building what you purpose to build. For instance, my purpose in building a church is so that we can better reach our city with the Gospel. I realize that the larger my church becomes, the more I can reach my city for Christ. In other words, I purpose to build many lives for Christ; therefore, I purpose to build a larger church. Your purpose keeps you focused on what you are doing. If you have no purpose for building, you will quickly get sidetracked.
Third, purpose to build something or die trying to build it. This is the key to successfully building something. You must be determined that you will keep on trying to build something or you will die trying. In other words, don't quit with your purpose to build something for God. Pastor, you should purpose to build a church for God or die trying to build it. Christian, purpose to build a bus route or Sunday school class for God or die trying to build it. It is this type of determination that turns purpose into reality.