The book of Genesis begins with a chaos of darkness. Then God hovered over the waters, created the light, and separated the light out of the darkness. And He saw it as good.
An angel of God blocks the Egyptians with a cloud of darkness on their side and a fiery light on the Israelite’s side. He sets the scene for a miracle using dark and light from the same cloud the night of their deliverance.
Ezekiel sees a valley of dry bones. The bones are so dry, no blood or marrow is inside them. Then God steps in, raises and breathes on them. He creates an army out of dead dry bones. He separates death from life.
Josiah shatters the idols of Judah. The darkness of Manasseh and his son Amon’s reigns, according to Halley’s Bible Handbook, obliterates the thought of God. Josiah separates the darkness of demons from the holiness of light.
Mary Magdalene looks into the tomb of Jesus, crying because His body is missing in action. She turns around and asks Him, where is her Lord’s body? She is focusing on the darkness of death until she hears His resurrected voice say her name, “Mary.”
The American colonies rebel against the darkness of British tyranny. A revolution ensues with a home-grown Continental army of soldiers. They are far outmatched by the most powerfully polished nation on earth. Fighting for the light and hope of freedom keeps the soldiers from giving in and giving up.
To rebuild a person, place, thing or idea, it starts with the death of the old and the resurrection of the new. As the Cambridge Dictionary defines it, it is “to build something again that has been damaged or destroyed.”
Our purpose is to work in keeping with the gifts and talents that God has given us to rebuild. We do our best, despite the obstacles, and leave the results to God. If we control the results, we invite distraction from starting new projects and invite an unholy manipulation of God’s work. Our projects fly to the destinations that God alone knows.
We bring to light Father’s business. Once we release our offering to the Lord, He uses every small and large offering to weave a tapestry of beauty. He weaves in the mistakes that are made along the way.
Rebuilding from a scale that incorporates both a worldly stage and individual lives, the work of our hands benefits ourselves and society by making us vessels of God’s love to each other. Stepping out in faith — be it personal, cultural, or political — we achieve God’s purposes. That was how the West was won and how it will be won again.
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