For no man can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if any man builds upon the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, each man's work will become evident; for the day will declare it, because it is to be revealed with fire; and the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is.
I Corinthians 3:11-13

Christ is the only foundation we can build upon. Some build with wood, hay and stubble. It doesn’t cost very much to build with these materials. They are cheap and easy to find. A work can be constructed without a lot of personal sacrifice in a short amount of time. Some choose to build with gold, silver and precious stones. These materials are costly to acquire. Obedience purchases the precious jewels, servant-hood the silver, sacrifice, the gold.

The holy fire that tries our service can only devour the works that arise in haste without the enduring skills of deep commitment.

Jesus’ sacrifice for us has purchased a foundation of pure gold, refined in the furnace of agony and suffering. Walk worthy of your foundation, my children, for with every footstep you design your walls. With every act of service, or lack of it, you construct your reward.

A shanty or a castle, the choice is yours.

copyright 2003 by Hannah Shively