April 15th

April 15th -- 1 Kings 6 (http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20Kings%206&version=NLT)

Solomon builds the Temple ; The Temple's interior

So this is Solomon's fourth year as king, and 480 years after the Israelites had been rescued from Egypt, and this is the year Solomon began building the Temple of the Lord.
There's a REALLY long list of specific descriptions that if you really want to know, you can go read the passage, but I am not retyping it all onto here. The point is, when the Temple was done being built, God told Solomon that if he kept obeying God's commands, God would keep through Solomon the promise He made to David, and would live among the Israelites and never abandon them.

Then there's this other REALLY long description of all the particulars of the interior of the temple. Again, if you wish to read them all, please feel free, but I'm not putting them all in here. The Temple was done in the eleventh year of Solomon's reign, meaning it took seven years to be built.

Okay, so, what can we gain from this? "How to Build a Temple to God 101"? Nope. I mean, I don't think I could fit one in my yard, anyway... And I'm even in the country, so I know you city folk can't.
So the point? Well, have you SEEN the list of specifics? And did you notice it took seven years to finish this thing? Solomon paid the utmost attention to every tiny detail. Now, sure nowadays with a big workforce and modern tools, this would have been a heck of a lot easier, but back then, they didn't have the same measuring tools, no table saws, no cordless drills, and no men trained in school to do heavy labour and building and design. Solomon still did his best to make every detail right. Why? Not for the sake of it looking nice, but because he knew he was doing it for God. He was following a plan for a Temple for God. He wanted to get all the details right, because that would be God's dwelling among the Israelites. I know nitpicky details can be frustrating and time-consuming, but Solomon did it so why can't we? I also know we're not exactly building God's temple, but we should be doing everything for God and with Him in mind, letting His Holy Spirit shine through us. As Colossians 3:23-24 says " Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving." We should remember that really, we're doing everything for God, so we should be trying to always do our best!

Well, that's all! God bless! Shalom!