First Kings
Saturday, August 7, 2010
More Than Imagined
(I Kings 8:62-66)
We often make the mistake of not planning big enough. Church fellowships serve as an example of this problem. It’s difficult to estimate the number attending, so those providing food need to guess at how much to prepare. After years of experience, we get it right—most of the time. Since I’d rather have too much than too little, I always encourage the ladies to plan for a big crowd. After all, leftovers can be used elsewhere or taken home by the cleanup crew. It’s better to plan for a lot and have too much than to plan for a few and have too little. I heard a motto a while back that summarizes this thought nicely: “Go big or go home.” It’s better to plan bigger.
Solomon had completed one of the most aggressive architectural wonders of the ancient world, Jehovah’s temple. Everything was built on a grand scale. Frankly, there was nothing that could compare to it in Solomon’s day. God is a big God, and Solomon accordingly built a big temple. On dedication day, however, Solomon may have had misgivings. For a few moments it appeared that Solomon had not built big enough. In an interesting historical note, the Bible tells us that Solomon had to “hallow the middle of the court that was before the house of the Lord.” He did so in order to make it a place of offering because “the brazen altar that was before the Lord was too little to receive the burnt offerings” (64).
Solomon learned a valuable lesson that day: God blesses us well beyond our service for Him. The most costly sacrifice made on God’s behalf pays dividends many times beyond the value of our time, efforts, and resources. David said, “…my cup runneth over,” meaning that God blesses beyond our ability to contain it. Let’s not limit God. Let’s keep our vision big, knowing that God can easily outdo our efforts with His blessing. Pray big prayers, and expect bigger answers. Make big plans, and expect bigger results. Remember, God is “…able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think” (Eph. 3:20).
