God the Firm Foundation

127 Unless the Lord builds the house,
    those who build it labor in vain.
Unless the Lord watches over the city,
    the watchman stays awake in vain.
2 It is in vain that you rise up early
    and go late to rest,
eating the bread of anxious toil;
    for he gives to his beloved sleep.
-Psalm 127

This psalm pops into my head pretty often.  When I am thinking about how I can control a situation, this verse is the prescription for the arrogance that comes washing over my mind, like melted ice cream down a cone.  How much can I really control?  If I focus on one variable, five others pop up.  At some point, we have to become aware of a futility to the control issues.

This psalm applies to any arena of life: parenting, career, finances, love… take your pick.  God grants success.  God gives the victories.  God rewards or thwarts effort.  Anytime we believe that our energy alone makes or breaks a projects, we have failed to show faith.  Pray first that God will grant faith to your kids, then talk to them.  Ask God to put you in a career that will expand his kingdom, then find a job.  Ask God to only give you what you need and to guide any excess.  Ask God to make you a good partner, then love your mate.

I guess it comes down to the foundation. If I can expand on Psalm 127's construction metaphor, do we consider God's work the thing we build on?  Is he the one who we are depending on to make our work viable?  Or are we building on top of our own effort?