"And in the eleventh year, in the month of Bul, which is the eighth month, the house was finished in all its details and according to all its plans. So he was seven years in building it. But Solomon took thirteen years to build his own house; so he finish all his house."

~1 Kings 6:37-7:1

Solomon had his moments. He was a man after God's heart - but, he had his moments when he turned away and did things he knew was wrong.

But, one demonstration of his commitment and reverence for God was when he built the temple. Solomon had a great deal of wealth at his fingertips. He was "heavy" with the precious metal plated items and large, custom cut stone when building.

He probably could have hired enough workers to have his house finished without it interfering with the completion of the temple.

Yet, he didn't.

He made sure that the temple was completely done - perfectly - just as the plans laid out. And, then....and ONLY then, did he go about finishing the building of his own house.

Sometimes in our need-it-now society, we forget who should be given due before us. We just want what we want and we want it now. Or we need what we need...and that is our highest priority.

Yet, Solomon, a man of means, was able to understand that the Lord's house must be completely before his own house. He must serve God before he served himself.

At least in this example, his priorities were in order. What a great example to keep in the fore of our minds when making decisions now and in the future.

Dei gratia,

Dee