Measurements – Do they even matter?

Numbers live somewhere on the left side of my brain. Well, that was where they used to live.  I think they likely still live there, but the door is closed. As it stands, the part of my brain where numbers reside is unaccessible. My grasp on words (aphasia) is hard but doable. My fatigue is manageable. In fact, it seems everyday everything gradually improves except for my grasp on numbers. I can’t say the number seven. But I can count, it takes a different part of my brain I guess. So I count: one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, TaDa! Seven was what I wanted to say.  Well, I guess that’s doable as well. 

But man, as a builder, my life was surrounded by numbers, measuring, laying out a building, estimating material, bookkeeping, doing some structural engineering, cutting roofs (which needs a lot of trigonometry). Just building things takes a lot of numbers.  I never knew how important numbers were in my life.  

So, I’m deciding if I want to complain or wax elegant. Hmm, okay, I decided to complain.

I guess in the scope of things it is not a big thing, my life could have been so much worse. And I am thankful that didn’t happen. But my numbers matter. I am wrestling with what to do. Can my life as a builder continue, a builder without numbers. A builder who can’t measure things. Arrrrgh!! Cutting roofs, never again? Arrrrrgh!!  Measurements?  Arrrrgh!! Estimating, bookkeeping, layout,? Arrrgh!!!  Okay, I’m done with complaining, no wait, Arrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrgh, Arrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrgh, Arrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrgh!!!!!!! Now I am done with complaining. It felt pretty good. 

But the question remains, do measurements matter? They matter to me, do they matter to you? 

As I think about it, measurements are based on a standard of some sort. When I used to measure things, the standard was an inch (the width of my thumb). Some places use a different standard, like centimeters, or cubits.  Cubits, for example, are 17.5” long (the length between the elbow to the middle finger).

Have you even ever heard of cubits? Well, in biblical times, cubits were the standard for measurements.  As I was reading my Bible, Ezekiel relates a vision he had, a weird vision, it was three chapters of measurements. Cubits galore.

Ezekiel’s vision begins like this.

….and I saw a man whose appearance was like bronze; he was standing in the gateway with a linen cord and a measuring rod in his hand. The man said to me, “Son of man, look carefully and listen closely and pay attention to everything I am going to show you, for that is why you have been brought here. Tell the people of Israel everything you see.”  I saw a wall completely surrounding the temple area. The length of the measuring rod in the man’s hand was six long cubits, each of which was a cubit and a handbreadth. He measured the wall; it was one measuring rod thick and one rod high.      Eze 40:3-5

And so it goes for 3 chapters. Measuring everything in the temple. Hmm, the dimension of the temple. It’s sort of a boring read. But the vision he had, ended with this.

Then the man brought me to the gate facing east,  and I saw the glory of the God of Israel coming from the east. His voice was like the roar of rushing waters, and the land was radiant with his glory.  The vision I saw was like the vision I had seen when he came to destroy the city and like the visions I had seen by the Kebar River, and I fell facedown. The glory of the LORD entered the temple through the gate facing east. Then the Spirit lifted me up and brought me into the inner court, and the glory of the LORD filled the temple.        Eze 43:1-5

Not so boring. His voice was like the roar of rushing water, the land was radiant with his glory, I fell facedown, then the glory of the Lord filled the temple. Wow, starting with the boring dimensions and ending with the glory of the lord. 

So, I’m thinking about the measurements of the temple. Clearly the measurements of the temple matter to God. I’m wondering if it is a metaphor of sorts.

Today we no longer have the “temple” but we are told we are the temple of God.   

Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in your midst? 1Co 3:16

And I’m wondering if the “measurements” of our lives matter to God as well?

I have a book called “The Measure of a Man”, actually now I have two books called “The Measure of a Man.” The first has been sitting on my bookshelf for several decades. It was written by Gene Getz. I remember reading it back in the days of “promise keepers”, and it is right in tune with the ”promise keeper” mindset. The second has been ordered and it is making its way to my door.  It is an autobiography by Sidney Poitier.  Don’t know much about his life, it seems he is a really thoughtful man plus I like biographies. So on the quest to measure my life, I have two books to read. 

I’m wondering what the standard of measurement of my life is? What is my “cubit”.

In the world we live in, the standard is money. But to measure a man in dollars and cents is shallow, everyone knows that. But still we measure by it. A better way to measure a man relates to his character.  

What is the standard we are measured by? Is it honesty? Is it love? Is it sacrifice? Is it obedience? Is it faith?  Maybe all of the above. Maybe the standard I’m measuring by is Christlikeness. Wow, talk about not measuring up. 

Regardless of how I measure up, the standard remains. An inch is still an inch.  

The measurements for the temple ended with the Spirit of God coming, and it was glorious, the temple indwelling with the Spirit of God  –  His voice was like the roar of rushing waters, and the land was radiant with his glory.  

And we are told we are the temple of God. The place where God dwells. Do our measurements matter? Absolutely they matter.