Daily Devotional

“Now it happened after this that Joash set his heart on repairing the house of the Lord” (2 Chronicles 24:4). 

When it was built in 1891, critics called it too extreme and lacking in style. But eventually, the Monadnock Building in Chicago was dubbed an architectural landmark. One of the nation’s earliest skyscrapers, critics now call it “a classic” and “a triumph of unified design.” 

By 1979, the building had badly declined. The main entrances had been closed, the ground floor had been defaced by garish signs, the brick had been painted and was peeling, and the beautiful marble wainscoting inside had been painted over. Decorative stair rails were enclosed and much of the original tile floor had been demolished. 

William Donnell purchased the building in 1979 for only $2 million and decided to restore the Monadnock to its original condition in painstaking detail. After working with original drawings, old photographs, and the nation’s leading preservation architects, Donnell spent thirteen years restoring the building down to the carbon filament bulbs. In 2008, he sold the restored structure for $48 million. 

Young King Joash embarked on an equally daunting restoration project—God’s temple in Jerusalem. Growing apostasy left the central building for worship in disrepair. When the king asked the Levites to go out and collect funds to repair the house of God, they did not cooperate. So, he placed a wooden chest outside the temple gate and requested that people bring offerings. The Israelites responded generously. “So, the workmen laboured, and the work was completed by them; they restored the house of God to its original condition” (2 Chronicles 24:13). 

You are the temple of God, but sin has brought disrepair to your life. Are you ready to bring yourself before the Lord for restoration? God promises to make you into His own likeness. 

Lord, restore me to Your likeness and create in my life the character of Jesus.