1 Corinthians 3:12-15

If anyone builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, their work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each person’s work. If what has been built survives, the builder will receive a reward. If it is burned up, the builder will suffer loss but yet will be saved—even though only as one escaping through the flames.

Regardless of your profession, your vocation, your education, or your skillset, you are an architect. And you’re an incredible architect because the building project you’re working on will last for eternity. Your building is set atop a foundation of Christ Jesus and your life is a long process of gathering materials. A word of caution, though, that this particular building project is for you and you alone. Whether it is ornate and beautiful or weak and insufficient is entirely up to you. How do you know if your building will stand the test that the verse in Corinthians lays out? Well, it will be tested by fire. What remains after the judgement (which the Bible says is a judgement reserved for those who follow Christ), is your reward for eternity. What a vulnerable moment, the moment of judgement where your life is looked at, your thoughts are looked at by God, and what sustains after that moment dictates your reward. That tells me that I ought to structure my life in such a way that I disregard the things that the world values, that culture values, and I press on in committing my life towards pursuing things that reinforce this building with precious materials. That may make for a more difficult experience in life, but it will certainly make for a more substantial eternity.