My Ramshackle Shack

On Friday, daughter-Jo described telling the story of the wise man who builds his house on the rock, and the foolish man who builds his house on the sand to children in Uganda.

On Saturday, at Abbie and Jacob’s wedding, in church and in speeches, there was talk of building a strong marriage.

Yesterday at church two young children were prayed for – young people just starting to build their lives; we remembered the responsibility of family and friends to help them to build well.

We read and thought about Psalm 127 that starts ‘Unless the Lord builds the house, the builders labour in vain.’

‘Life-building’ has been a repeated theme.

It’s a familiar picture that I’ve heard explained many times in church, in school, in life. Get the design right… take care with the right foundation… use the right materials for the building. It’s a metaphor that I’ve used many times myself. I’ve told stories, sung building songs, explained the idea. I still find it a helpful metaphor.

Now, as an ‘older man’, with a lifetime of building experience, I guess my house is largely built. I stand back; I look at it, inspect it… It’s a ramshackle shack!

Whatever the initial plan and design, some of the construction has been a bit random; sometimes the underground foundations are sometimes obscured from view… but it’s I’m grateful still standing.

Musing…

…My ramshackle shack… Etymology Online says ‘ramshackle’ means, ‘loosely joined, ill-made or out of good condition; chaotic or likely to collapse’; a ‘shack’ is a ‘very roughly built house or cabin’.

…In the mean-time… I’m still building. I’m slower than I used to be; it means I can pay more attention to detail. I have a responsibility to myself, to others, to my God, to do a good job.

…As an experienced builder I can help less experienced younger builders with their building planning, laying firm foundations, using good building materials, and persevering to create a higher quality construction than my old ramshackle shack!