Rebuilding on Top of the Ruins

I bless the “ruins” of your life

To become the hill upon which

Your tomorrow is built—higher,

And better.

Yesterday is over,

But the rubble of your past shall not be wasted.

“This is what the Lord says: ‘I will restore

The fortunes of Jacob’s tents

And have compassion on his dwellings;

The city will be rebuilt on her ruins’” (Jer. 30:18 NIV).

God is not blind to your losses.

He is not deaf to your cries.

He is moved with unquenchable compassion on your behalf.

He is a restorer, a master renovator,

Who can incorporate every broken fragment of yesteryear

Into the foundation of a new,

Higher place for you to dwell.

Like the ancient cities rebuilt upon the ruins of former days,

Your adversities have become clay in God’s hands—

He’s molding a mountain out of your mistakes

So you can live atop it all with a whole new perspective.

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Part of today’s blessing is excerpted from the parting blessing in my new book, The Power to Bless, releasing February 2 (Baker Books). Pre-order it today and you’ll get a free audiobook!

In ancient times, often a marauded city’s ruins became the ideal building spot for a new city. The years of dust and debris eventually formed a large hill (a “tell”) and new builders would use it as the foundation for a new city with a higher, strategic altitude. God can use the “ruins” of your life to give you a new, higher perspective as well. And that’s the Gospel!