1 Kings 5:1-6:1, 7
In
the fourth year of King Solomon's rule, he decides to carry on the
vision that his father had. David never got to build the temple that
he'd always wanted because he had opposition on all sides and war dotted
his rule.
Solomon knows that in order to carry out his vision, he will need major help. It's a massive project and he doesn't have all the resources he needs to carry it out. So, he calls up his friend - the king of Lebanon - and invites him into his vision. He puts himself out there, knowing that Hiram could possibly say no. Lebanon is full of the best cedar and cypress trees, and Solomon needs a ton of them to build the temple. He offers to send workers to work alongside Hiram's men, cutting down trees, assembling them into rafts, and floating them over to the spot Solomon needs them. He even offers to pay Hiram's workers whatever wage he sets.
Hiram loves the vision, and he decides to go all in. He declines the offer of employee wages, but asks Solomon to just provide food for his crews. They agree on the project, and the massive campaign begins. The author says there are 180,000 people working on the project - 30,000 lumberjacks, 70,000 unskilled laborers, and 80,000 stonecutters. There are also 3,300 project managers. This is a huge construction project.
Again, this is a story that's very hard to fathom, but the principle behind it seems quite clear: Solomon had a vision, and he didn't have the resources to further the vision. He had to ask another king for help. In so doing, he created hundreds of thousands of jobs, and invited hundreds of thousands of people in the his vision of building the temple that his father had dreamed of.
Solomon could have repeated the mistakes of some of his predecessors by keeping his vision a secret, making decisions behind closed doors, and doing whatever he thought he needed to do without talking to others about it. He could have gone into Lebanon and used his authority to steal away all the cedar and cypress trees he needed. He could have left Hiram and his citizens out of the project. But, he didn't. He believe that his vision was something that everyone could be a part of, asking
permission
from Hiram was the natural thing to do. Solomon's excitement was
contagious, and Hiram jumped on board from the get go.
When we set out to create something good in the world, we don't have all the resources we need at hand. It takes people, money, and cooperation from others. It requires taking the risk of having our ideas rejected or dismissed by the ones we're inviting into it. We may have the brains behind it, but we need labor, skill, and individual talent to carry it out.
I have tried to build good things in the world behind closed doors. It just doesn't work. I'm afraid of telling anybody because in reality, I wasn't confident of the vision. I figured that people would laugh or simply tell me I was out of my mind. The truth is, if we have a vision but are afraid of asking for permission from people who are providing the resources, then we never really had a solid vision in the first place. Projects that last are the ones where the people providing the resources know the details. The excitement is contagious. People can personally visualize what they're helping to build, and can turn it into reality.
I moved to Galveston under the guise of developing a community among the poor. My plans were to help people get out of poverty, get jobs, and come to know the God I believed in. However, I had this internal dilemma going on that was sucking me dry. I couldn't stop drinking. I had a war going on inside of me. The battle raging within caused me to take my vision on my own and leave other people out of it. The people I was closest to were left on the outside looking in. It didn't take long after moving to Galveston for my vision to crumble and completely turn in a different direction because I never created a support system or invited other people with their resources into it.
Today, I'm getting a do-over. I'm getting to invite people into a vision I have of a group of people sharing their "sacred places" with each other. I know that I can't do it on my own, and that I need the direction and consent of people who will be directly responsible for creating this "temple." Inviting other people into this and asking them to contribute places me at a place of vulnerability. I will get rejected and dismissed. However, there will be people who love the idea. The excitement is getting contagious. There is no end to the amount of good that a group of inspired people can create in the world, and there is nothing that can stop it.
Today's Action: What is the thing that we're most passionate about? Have we dreamed of how we can use that passion to create good in the world? Have we invited people into it? Are we dreaming big? Do we realize that we don't have all the resources we need to build?
Solomon knows that in order to carry out his vision, he will need major help. It's a massive project and he doesn't have all the resources he needs to carry it out. So, he calls up his friend - the king of Lebanon - and invites him into his vision. He puts himself out there, knowing that Hiram could possibly say no. Lebanon is full of the best cedar and cypress trees, and Solomon needs a ton of them to build the temple. He offers to send workers to work alongside Hiram's men, cutting down trees, assembling them into rafts, and floating them over to the spot Solomon needs them. He even offers to pay Hiram's workers whatever wage he sets.
Hiram loves the vision, and he decides to go all in. He declines the offer of employee wages, but asks Solomon to just provide food for his crews. They agree on the project, and the massive campaign begins. The author says there are 180,000 people working on the project - 30,000 lumberjacks, 70,000 unskilled laborers, and 80,000 stonecutters. There are also 3,300 project managers. This is a huge construction project.
Again, this is a story that's very hard to fathom, but the principle behind it seems quite clear: Solomon had a vision, and he didn't have the resources to further the vision. He had to ask another king for help. In so doing, he created hundreds of thousands of jobs, and invited hundreds of thousands of people in the his vision of building the temple that his father had dreamed of.
Solomon could have repeated the mistakes of some of his predecessors by keeping his vision a secret, making decisions behind closed doors, and doing whatever he thought he needed to do without talking to others about it. He could have gone into Lebanon and used his authority to steal away all the cedar and cypress trees he needed. He could have left Hiram and his citizens out of the project. But, he didn't. He believe that his vision was something that everyone could be a part of, asking
When we set out to create something good in the world, we don't have all the resources we need at hand. It takes people, money, and cooperation from others. It requires taking the risk of having our ideas rejected or dismissed by the ones we're inviting into it. We may have the brains behind it, but we need labor, skill, and individual talent to carry it out.
I have tried to build good things in the world behind closed doors. It just doesn't work. I'm afraid of telling anybody because in reality, I wasn't confident of the vision. I figured that people would laugh or simply tell me I was out of my mind. The truth is, if we have a vision but are afraid of asking for permission from people who are providing the resources, then we never really had a solid vision in the first place. Projects that last are the ones where the people providing the resources know the details. The excitement is contagious. People can personally visualize what they're helping to build, and can turn it into reality.
I moved to Galveston under the guise of developing a community among the poor. My plans were to help people get out of poverty, get jobs, and come to know the God I believed in. However, I had this internal dilemma going on that was sucking me dry. I couldn't stop drinking. I had a war going on inside of me. The battle raging within caused me to take my vision on my own and leave other people out of it. The people I was closest to were left on the outside looking in. It didn't take long after moving to Galveston for my vision to crumble and completely turn in a different direction because I never created a support system or invited other people with their resources into it.
Today, I'm getting a do-over. I'm getting to invite people into a vision I have of a group of people sharing their "sacred places" with each other. I know that I can't do it on my own, and that I need the direction and consent of people who will be directly responsible for creating this "temple." Inviting other people into this and asking them to contribute places me at a place of vulnerability. I will get rejected and dismissed. However, there will be people who love the idea. The excitement is getting contagious. There is no end to the amount of good that a group of inspired people can create in the world, and there is nothing that can stop it.
Today's Action: What is the thing that we're most passionate about? Have we dreamed of how we can use that passion to create good in the world? Have we invited people into it? Are we dreaming big? Do we realize that we don't have all the resources we need to build?
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