I loved watching my daughter play soccer when she was a toddler. At that age, there wasn’t much in the way of athletic ability, but it sure was fun to watch. She would start off strong chasing the ball down the field. Then she would get distracted and sit down in the grass and start picking flowers. The coach would yell for her to go get that ball. She would finally hear him, snap out of it, jump up, and get back in the game.

I can relate. I do that a lot in life. There’s a game to play and a goal to score.  I start off strong, but then I get distracted and find myself investing in things that have no eternal value. I’m off making daisy chains in the grass. My Great Coach, the Lord, is calling me to focus and get back in the game.

Lately the story of the Tower of Babel keeps coming to mind. The Bible says in Genesis 11:1, “Now the whole world had one language and a common speech.” Then in verse 4 the people said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city, with a tower that reaches to the heavens, so that we may make a name for ourselves…” 

We usually think of unity as a good thing, and it certainly can be. But not when people are unified for the wrong reasons. The purpose of this tall tower was so the people could make a name for themselves. The tower of Babel was all about them. They were building it for their comfort, their pleasure, their fame, their purposes. And what did God do? He brought their building project to a halt. He confused their language and scattered them.

Genesis 11:8 says, “The Lord scattered them from there over all the earth, and they stopped building the city. That is why it was called Babel—because there the Lord confused the language of the whole world. From there the Lord scattered them over the face of the whole earth.” 

During this quarantine, the question I can’t seem to shake is, “What am I building with my life?” See, we are all building something. Maybe it’s a reputation, a career, a hobby, a relationship. Maybe you are like me and you have a tower that looks a lot like Netflix. I spend way too much time on that tower. LOL

 

We are all building something—and if we aren’t careful we could be building our own “Towers of Babel.”

 

Then, one day, as if with a snap of fingers, BAM, everything came to a screeching halt. We were scattered–literally—not just our country, but our world. And now on top of all that, there’s such unrest and violence in our country. It’s confusing and scary. This pandemic has caused me to rethink and reevaluate so many things in my life.

But here’s what I know about God. Everything He allows to happen has a reason and a purpose. We might not understand His purpose, but He has a purpose.

I don’t claim to know God’s heart in all this. But I can’t help but wonder if, like the story of the Tower of Babel, maybe our “language” needs to change.

See, language can have a theme. And the theme of the language for the Tower of Babel was pride. The people came together to make a name for “themselves.” And that was not what God intended for His people. God has greater purposes for our lives than for us to waste our lives on ourselves.  He knows how feeble and unsteady our “Babels” are. They never last.

Whatever the reasons, I do believe God can use these difficult times like these to get our attention and get us back on track. Our Great Coach is calling for us to stop making daisy chains in the grass and get back in the game. Maybe it’s time to re-evaluate what we building with our lives.

Maybe He’s scattering us away from the things that keep us from Him so that He can gather us closer to Him.

2 Chronicles 7:13-14 says, 

“When I shut up the heavens so there is no rain, or command locusts to devour the land, or send a plague among my people, if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.”

God hasn’t left us hanging. He is clear. He tells us exactly what we need to do when trials like these come into our lives. These verses tell us to humble ourselves. Pray. Seek His face. Turn from our wicked ways.

It is a language shift from a language of self-focus to a language of humility, prayer, and righteous living. 

Sara Hegerty says, “I put His Word in my mouth and I find my language begins to change. As my language changes, my heart becomes inclined to follow.”

Our language is always a reflection of our hearts. Luke 6:45 says, “Out of the overflow of the heart, the mouth speaks.” 

Check out what happens when God’s people humble themselves, repent, and seek Him.

“Now my eyes will be open and my ears attentive to the prayers offered in this place. I have chosen and consecrated this temple so that my Name may be there forever. My eyes and my heart will always be there.” 2 Chronicles 7:15-16 

Did you catch that?

“…so that my Name may be there forever. My eyes and my heart will always be there.” 

Isn’t that beautiful? Forget about investing in a bumbling Babel. When we stop building towers for ourselves and start building lives that honor God, He puts HIS name and HIS heart there. He sets His eyes and heart on those who honor Him. WOW! Now that’s good stuff!

Let’s use this time of confusion and chaos to humble ourselves and draw close to Him. To seek Him. Seek Him through all of the changes, uncertainty, unrest and confusion. Look for Him. Read His Word. Listen for His voice.

Sometimes it’s only when He confuses the voices around us that we can hear His voice the clearest.

Do you hear your Great Coach calling? Throw down those daisy chains. Let’s get back in the game and build lives that honor Him! 

Did I mention that not only are God’s towers the most durable, but they are also the most beautiful?

They are!