Unless the Lord builds the house,
    the builders labor in vain.
Unless the Lord watches over the city,
    the guards stand watch in vain.
- Psalm 127:1
 
How can this statement be true?
 
The builders working on the house clock in and clock out, pour concrete and slam down tile. The guards do their rounds, protect their night vision, and maintain a vigilance. All of this work happens and all of it matters. How does the Lord fit in?
 
The Lord is described as being actively at work in the work of the city: housebuilding and policing. He’s not too high or lofty for it. He’s engaged. But we so often miss his work. And, according to this week’s psalm, his work is the most essential work.
 
“In whatever a man does without God, he must fail miserably—or succeed more miserably,” wrote George MacDonald his Unspoken Sermons. This psalm challenges us to value God’s presence and activity, even above our own.
 
Over the next several weeks we’ll be reflecting on challenges that appear when we attempt to move toward rest. One of the biggest has to do with our perspective on our work. If we think we’re in it all on our own or that our effort is the only effort that matters, when will we ever rest?
 
When have you experienced the Lord’s work … the Lord building the house, the Lord feeding the kids, the Lord paying the bills, the Lord applying for grants, the Lord watching over the city?