What are you Building?

I normally don't steal messages, but sometimes they are just too good not to use.  So I give full credit to Pastor Clay Baird for this thought, but ultimately know that He got it from God so I don't mind re-using it.  Typically God will put something else on my heart to write about, but this has been a mainstay so here it goes.Lets go back to the story of Noah in Genesis.  Put yourself in that time period.  We aren't sure how many people are on the earth, but its still fairly early in the history of the world.  A lot of the land more than likely hadn't been developed and there was probably a lot of building going on.  I like to imagine it like the early settler days in America, with people building non-stop (houses, churches, buildings, etc.).  Got that picture in your head?Now picture this...God comes to Noah and tells him to start building.  Noah probably is ok with this concept until God tells him what to build. A boat.  A large one.  On dry land. So Noah doesn't question it and he starts building, and he builds it for 100 years!  In this amount of time, think about how many buildings and other full towns must have been built around him.  I can only imagine what a waste of time and resources it must have looked like to everyone else but Noah.  They had built full towns and completed them, and Noah was STILL building this boat that was going to be impossible to get into a large enough body of water.  What a waste.So what was the difference?  Noah's faith had given him insight into what God was going to do.  Noah's faith allowed God to speak to him, and as a result he was building something that would last, not get torn down or submerged by the flood.Noah knew what he was building would not only last, but would save others (animals) along with his family.  He didn't build the boat just for him, that would have been a much smaller boat.So the question is simple.What are you building?Are you building a life that is for you and will get torn down when storms come?  Or are you building a life that is following God's direction?The latter will not only withstand the storm, but will also make a difference to those around you.  Don't take the easy way out, and build the house that will only last for a little bit.  Listen to what God has for you, heed His warning, and invest the time (even if its more) in building something that will last and be impactful.If you read this you may be thinking, well I've been building this life for so long I might as well finish and then when I am done Ill still have time to start building one for God.  I would HIGHLY encourage you to STOP right now, and start working on a new life with God that is eternal.  Why waste time on something that ultimately won't last?If you need help with this (either stopping your current path or understanding how to start a new one) please don't hesitate to contact me or a local pastor to talk through it.  You will not regret your decision!