Beyond the Big Event

1 Kings 8:63
63 Solomon offered a sacrifice of fellowship offerings to the Lord: twenty-two thousand cattle and a hundred and twenty thousand sheep and goats. So the king and all the Israelites dedicated the temple of the Lord. –NIV

Wow! It is hard for me to even imagine this scene in my mind. Over a two week period Solomon offered 144,000 sacrifices. Indulge me for a minute as I process this…that is 10,286 sacrifices every day, or 429 sacrifices every hour or 7 sacrifices every minute of every hour of every day for two whole weeks!

What an event. What a sight. What an incredible experience that must have been. A powerful moment and I am sure an incredibly emotional encounter. As humans we tend to migrate to the grandiose, to the spectacular to the big event. Yet, the event was just that – 2 weeks. What happened after the event?

Like many believers today, Solomon burst on the scene shining bright and full of passion. However, like a falling star that shines brightest in the sky for a moment before fading away, so Solomon’s faithfulness diminished after the Big Event. For Solomon it was his lack of consistency that became his downfall. Solomon neglected to put the everyday effort necessary to honor God. He ignored God’s Word, married foreign wives, allowed false worship to creep in and got distracted with worldly pursuits.

Big events, spiritual mountain tops, are great but it is the small decisions, the everyday stuff; the day in, day out consistency of honoring God that determines the legacy of our life. Reflecting back on his life it wasn’t the big events Solomon remembered but rather it was his lament that he wished he would have been consistent with his life…

Eccl 12:13-14
13 Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole [duty] of man. 14 For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil. – NIV

I encourage you, look beyond the big events of your Christian experience, the spiritual mountain tops, to the small things of your life. Develop consistency in honoring God and there lies the blessings of God!

Blessings,
Darren