Called to Build, Not Break

Sometimes I wonder how we got here. A world where it’s easier to pick apart than it is to lift up. Where opinions fly faster than prayers, and judgment shouts louder than grace. Where church has become, for many, a place of pressure instead of a home for the hurting.

But we weren’t made to be wrecking balls. We were called to be builders.

Builders of hope. Builders of faith. Builders of people, not perfection. We were never meant to use our words, our silence, or our pride to tear down what God is still patiently restoring.

And can I be honest with you?

I once stood on a stage and looked down at the crowd. I judged those who came up for prayer week after week, not realizing how much I needed to be up there myself. I watched the occasional attendees come and go and internally rolled my eyes, not understanding that one day that would be me, needing rest more than routine, desperate for grace over guilt. I heard people share their struggles and, if I’m honest, sometimes I zoned out. Not because I didn’t care, but because I didn’t know how to carry their pain on top of my own.

I didn’t know that grace was always meant to make room.

And maybe that’s where we’ve gone a little wrong. Maybe we don’t stop long enough to truly know someone. Maybe we’ve stopped asking the questions that matter, or maybe we’ve become afraid of the answers. Maybe we’ve gotten so focused on showing up right that we forgot how to show up real. Maybe we forgot how much we need Jesus too.

But friend, the Church isn’t a stage. It’s not a show. It’s not the place we perform. It’s the place we kneel. The place we stay. The place we come home to when we’re weary and bleeding and unsure if we’re still worthy of love.

It’s the place where Jesus still stoops low and washes feet.

We are not called to be critics of each other’s healing, but companions in it. We’re meant to build homes where the exhausted can rest. Tables where the misunderstood can belong. We’re meant to pour courage into cracked places, not stand back and wonder why they haven’t healed yet.

It doesn’t take strength to point out what’s broken. But it takes Jesus to help rebuild it.

Because He never once looked at someone’s mess and walked away. He always moved closer. He always made room. And if we are going to walk in His footsteps, then we must be those who build.

We must be the ones who stay. Who see. Who listen. Who forgive. Who speak life when silence would be easier. Who open the door wide and say, “There’s still a place for you here.”

We are not called to break what Christ died to restore. We are called to love it back to life.

Let us be a people who build again.

Let us be a Church that heals.

“Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.” – 1 Thessalonians 5:11 (NIV)

love, Sarah xx.

Thank you for being here in this quiet space. I know the words I share are not always easy, but they are always honest, always reaching toward grace.

This little corner wasn’t made to impress, it was made to remind. That we are not alone, that we are being shaped, and that Jesus is still the hero of every story, even the messy ones.

If these heart words spoke something into your day, I’d be so grateful if you shared them. And if you feel led, you can upgrade to a paid subscription to support the work God is doing here.

It’s just me and the Lord, showing up as we are, one post at a time.

All I have are my heart words, and I pray they are enough.

You being here means more than you know.