Burned up!

It’s gone—all gone. Just ashes and charred ruins are left of a family home just a few blocks away. It burst into flames one night while the family was away. By the time neighbors woke and discovered the burning house, it was too late to save. A couple, two small children, and a brother were suddenly homeless.

Seeing the blackened shell a few days after the fire, I had two thoughts. One was, “How utterly sad.” Buying that home had probably stretched this young couple to their financial limits. In the newspaper article telling of their loss, the wife said they were grateful they still had one another. But the children were already missing their baby blankets.

 My other thought was of the “fire” that will test everything I’ve done in life. The apostle Paul wrote of how Christians build on the foundation of faith in Christ. They can build with gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw--referring to choices that involve our work, relationships and service. In the end, when believers face God, “it will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man’s work” (1 Corinthians 3:13).

If we believe in Christ, and are counting on His atoning work on the cross for our salvation, we won’t lose that.  But if our lives were filled with selfish or frivolous pursuits, they’ll flame up like dry straw. On the other hand, if our love for Christ has led us into spiritually fruitful lives, there will be heavenly rewards (v. 14).

The Bible says the “fires” of suffering we experience on earth have a purpose in shaping us for eternity. “These have come,” Peter wrote, “so that your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed” (1 Peter 1:6-7). Suffering can either make us bitter, or better-equipped for God’s purposes.

I’m sorry for the young couple who lost so much of their worldly possessions. It’s on my walking route, so I will see it often. For now, it’s a sobering reminder to consider what building materials I am laying on the foundation of faith in Christ. Excessive pleasure? Personal indulgence? Isolation from the world’s needs? Or service to my needy world grounded in love for Christ? To borrow that oft-quoted poem by missionary C.T. Studd:  “Only one life, ‘twill soon be past; only what’s done for Christ will last.”