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Nov 02, 2025 06:00am

Trading Shacks and Naps for a Faith That Lasts

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I’ll never forget when my dad gave me instructions for after his death. He told me exactly where he wanted to be buried (near his mother) and what possessions each of his children were to inherit. I remember it feeling heavy and sad because these were things I was to do—the oldest child—when he died. But my dad was so passionate about these last instructions that I didn’t tear up. I listened attentively, writing down his words and repeating them back to him.

A year and a half later, he unexpectedly passed away. Amidst the shock and sadness, I had one thing that anchored me: he had already told me what he wanted done in this moment. He had already shared what was most important to him. I didn’t have to make any guesses on what to do—I already knew because he had prepared me.

I wonder if this is what King David had in mind when he wrote the words of Psalm 127:

Unless the Lord builds a house . . . unless the Lord watches over a city . . . it is all in vain.

You see, David was at the end of his days. He had been doing something important in his last days: preparing his son, Solomon, not only to take over as king but also to build the Lord’s temple. Life lessons and faithful legacies perhaps fueled these words he wanted to pass on to Solomon.

Throughout his life, David experienced dark valleys and beautiful mountaintop moments. He experienced God’s faithfulness at every step. He knew that God was not only with him, but He would work all things out for His good. And now, at the end of his life, David is preparing his son with one of his strongest legacies: to build a house for the Lord. The temple would represent God and the Jews’ faith. It’s where they would travel several times a year for corporate worship. It was where sacrifices were made. It’s where God’s presence would reside (the Most Holy of Holies). It was everything to the Jews! In The Bible Recap, Tara-Leigh Cobble wrote, “The temple was central to their relationship with God, just like the Spirit is for us today.” It was that vital, friends.

David, inspired by the Holy Spirit, made all the plans and prepared all the supplies for Solomon to begin. Here is the ironic part: David wanted to build the temple himself . . . and God told him “no.” Instead of getting angry and bitter, David accepted it, trusting God’s decision. Perhaps this fueled his words to Solomon as he commissioned him for this most important and most sacred job:

Know the Lord.
Serve Him with your whole heart and a willing mind, for the Lord looks at the heart.
If you seek Him, you will find Him.
Be strong to do the task the Lord has planned for you.
Be strong and courageous and do the work! God is with you and will not abandon you.

Can you imagine the pressure Solomon must have felt as he took over for his father? These words may have been precisely what Solomon needed to hear in order to do the job God had planned for him.

If David’s story has shown us anything, it’s this: walking in God’s will is seldom easy. It might be the hardest thing we’ve ever done. But God will use every obstacle—strife, disobedience, wandering, or opposition—in our lives to chisel a godly character in us, as we trust and follow Him.

According to Psalm 127:1, everything else we try to do on our own, adrift from God, is in vain. It won’t last. The Message words this sentiment well: “If God does not build the house, the builders only build shacks. If God does not guard the city, the night watchman might as well nap.”

I do not want shacks and naps, friends; I want God’s best.

God has a purpose and a plan for each of us. It is a plan that involves “yes” to the things within His will, and “no” to those that would hold us back from it. Is it hard to accept the “no’s”? You bet. However, if we view His “no’s” as His kindest answers and remember His character, as the Bible reveals it to us, it helps give us the strength and grit to accept it . . . and continue to trust and follow Him.

God’s plan for our lives gives us hope in the valleys, gratitude for the mountaintop moments, and assurance of His presence throughout it all. It’s a rock-solid foundation where we walk by faith until faith becomes sight.

That is when we trade shacks and naps for a faith that lasts.