When you own your first home, you take a special kind of pride in it. I remember when my sister and I bought our house about five years ago--it felt like such a big accomplishment! I'll be clear--we weren't rich by most North American standards...she worked at a non-profit and I was just beginning my career in marketing. We were both single women under the age of 25. We saved our money, tried to spend wisely and were able to buy our home without borrowing a dime from our parents.
I remember the first summer we were in the house. It felt different to mow the lawn because it was our lawn. It felt awesome to fix things like light fixtures in the house--because it was our house. And it felt amazing to decorate our home for Christmas for the first time--just the way we liked it. (I still feel that way about decorating...not so much about lawn mowing.) :)
When I read today's passage, it reminded me of that feeling. God gave instructions for His people to set up His house--just the way He liked it. Today's chapters also reminded me of what we learned yesterday: God is into details. He provided very specific guidelines for the design and construction of His house and all the key elements included (I kind of felt like I was reading the first edition of "Building God's house: For dummies"!).
Reading these chapters illustrated God's value for excellence. He likes it when people give their absolute best for Him--via their offerings, hearts and skills. Honestly, if anyone deserves our best, it's Him. And if any place should be a place of excellence, it should be a church--because it's His house, after all.
Tomorrow: Exodus 28-29
