The Three Pillars of Life

God designed humans to thrive in orderly environments. While the order that we seek may look different for each of us, many analysts have noticed that we do our best work – even our most creative and unconventional work – in orderly environments. Recently I’ve noticed three external pillars of life. The stability of each pillar contributes to the orderliness of life.

Church

The first pillar is the local church and the spiritual support that it provides. For some people, this pillar may appear the least necessary. Isn’t it enough to be a member of the universal church? Theologically, – no – but aside from the theological issue, it also isn’t wise or practical to be separate from the local church. Paul referred to this institution as a ‘pillar and buttress of the truth,’ and the body of Christ is designed to grow us spiritually and provide support and stability when everything else in life is collapsing. In addition, the local church protects us from blind spots – from veering off course when we imagine that we are following the narrow way.

Family

Our family and close friends have a powerful effect on our lives, and the degree to which we feel support, care, and trust from them radically affects the stability of our lives. While we may occasionally have disagreements with family members, the pillar of family is strong when our communication is healthy and we feel support, encouragement, motivation, and even gentle exhortation from family members.

Work

While many people would consider a stable career to be the most important pillar of an orderly life, the Bible places the least emphasis on this. It constantly warns us to not be anxious about the future or worried about how will we have necessities. Yet it is true that our sense of calling – the way that we spend our time – is important in a stable life. Is our work cut out for us, and is it something that we feel we ought to do? Are we engaged in work that supports ourselves, enables us to provide for the needs of others, and that makes us productive members of society? Such a calling is not only a wise use of time, but it is a fundamental expression of the Christian view of the world and how God created mankind to work.

Conclusion

These are all external factors. There are many internal factors that also affect the stability of our lives. Our relationship with God is crucial. The way that we work through stress, and the degree of biblical truth that we believe and interact with, will also profoundly affect the stability and order of our lives.

Recognizing that your life is based on these three pillars, it’s important to work for stability in each pillar. What actions can you take to strengthen each pillar? If possible, don’t try to radically change more than one pillar at a time, since that can lead to excessive chaos in your life. Recognize that ultimately, your life is in God’s hands. As you pursue Him, He can give you the knowledge that you need to improve these pillars.