A single word from an ancient prophet can unmask the stories we tell ourselves about success.

We open Habakkuk 2:6–14 and confront three devastating “woes” that speak to our age; wealth taken at the expense of others, security propped up by pride, and cities built on injustice. The imagery is unforgettable; possessions are thick clay, clinging to our lives, burdening our minds, and isolating us from God and neighbor. When comfort becomes a god, the upkeep never ends, and the conscience never rests.

We trace how consequences return to the doorstep of the wrongdoer—not as superstition, but as moral symmetry in a world watched by a just God. Even the beams and stones, Habakkuk says, testify against empires built by blood. That line pushes us past private choices into public ethics; wages, labor, exploitation, and the systems that look sturdy until truth shakes their foundations. Along the way, we wrestle with practical questions; how do we keep resources from becoming idols? What habits move us away from those idols? Generosity? Confession? Service? Where can we improve and choose integrity over advantage?

The final movement lifts our eyes. While vanity burns out, a better future rises; the earth filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as waters cover the sea. That promise does not dull responsibility; it energizes it.

We choose to build what lasts; honest work, merciful leadership, and communities anchored in justice and humility.

Join us as we pray, reflect, and make space for God to realign our loves, lighten our load, and turn our clay into tools for His good.

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Habakkuk 2:6-14

King James Version

6 Shall not all these take up a parable against him, and a taunting proverb against him, and say, Woe to him that increaseth that which is not his! how long? and to him that ladeth himself with thick clay!

7 Shall they not rise up suddenly that shall bite thee, and awake that shall vex thee, and thou shalt be for booties unto them?

8 Because thou hast spoiled many nations, all the remnant of the people shall spoil thee; because of men's blood, and for the violence of the land, of the city, and of all that dwell therein.

9 Woe to him that coveteth an evil covetousness to his house, that he may set his nest on high, that he may be delivered from the power of evil!

10 Thou hast consulted shame to thy house by cutting off many people, and hast sinned against thy soul.

11 For the stone shall cry out of the wall, and the beam out of the timber shall answer it.

12 Woe to him that buildeth a town with blood, and stablisheth a city by iniquity!

13 Behold, is it not of the Lord of hosts that the people shall labour in the very fire, and the people shall weary themselves for very vanity?

14 For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea.

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