Rebuilding the Waste Places
Isaiah 58:12
“And they that shall be of thee shall build the old waste places: thou shalt raise up the foundations of many generations; and thou shalt be called, The repairer of the breach, The restorer of paths to dwell in.”
I have had the privilege of being around men who have had a vision to rebuild old worn down buildings into a thriving ministry. Two men come to my mind when I think of this; Bro. Jim Clemensen and Bro. Don Chitty. Bro. Clemensen of the Agape Boarding School took over a run down camp, and has built it into an incredible complex. The buildings that God allowed him to build are nothing short of amazing for the ministry of rebuilding the lives of young men. On the other hand, Bro. Chitty is a missionary to the Navajo Indians. Years ago God gave him a rundown piece of property that was grown over by vegetation. He took that rundown property and turned it into a ranch where young people come every summer to hear the preaching of the Word of God. Both of these men took an old waste place and rebuilt it for God’s glory.
God wants Christians to be in the rebuilding business. One of the reasons God blessed Israel was so that they would build the old waste places. Places that had become desolate, they were to restore back to usefulness. Places that others condemned, they were to make useful again.
All around you are people whose lives have been wasted by sin. God wants you to see beyond sin’s damage and see what He can do through them. If you are going to be successful in God’s eyes, then you must make your life about rebuilding lives that are considered wasted. You must never come to the point in your life where you don’t want to help people who have been wasted by sin. You must realize that the ministry is about being one whom God uses to rebuild lives.
The first step in rebuilding lives is re-establishing the foundations again. Those foundations are found in the Word of God. You will never rebuild lives without God’s Word. The reason lives became wasted by sin is because they left the foundational principles of God’s Word. Always begin the rebuilding process by going back to the basics of the Word of God. Sin destroys the foundations of Bible reading, prayer, confession of sin, soul winning, faithfulness to church and a daily walk with God. These are the foundations of rebuilding lives.
The second step in rebuilding lives is repairing the breach. In other words, relationships that were damaged must be repaired. Sin always damages innocent people. Nobody will ever be restored without getting right with those whom they hurt. If a person truly gets right with God, they will do their best to get right with everyone that their sin hurt. Don’t accept excuses, but affirm that they must accept what their sin did to others.
The third step in rebuilding lives is restoring the paths. In other words, it is re-establishing good habits and routines in their lives. Help people get paths by which they daily live. Establishing routines and habits in one’s life will help restore the wasted life into a beautiful life.
Christian, let me encourage you to get involved in rebuilding the waste places. Accept the challenge that others have considered wasted, and make it your goal to make it a useful life again. If you will accept this challenge, then you will never find the person whom you can’t help.