Renovation

Building and renovation projects can be a time consuming investment. Some of us would just rather avoid them altogether and others of us jump in with both feet, but by the time we are in up to our necks we look around and wonder what we were thinking. I have recently been through a somewhat small “renovation” project in our home in Liberia. I put renovation in parentheses because it was never meant to be something that needed to be redone in the first place. However, if there is one thing we have learned about Liberia it is this, things rarely get done right the first time. So, be on your guard when they actually are done “right.” Please don’t misunderstand me here. I am by no means trying to criticize the Liberian culture. It’s just that when you receive education by an uneducated culture the results of that education are surely going to bring about it’s fair share of problems. And this is exactly what we are seeing in the country of Liberia. They are caught in a vicious cycle of poor education. So, upon graduation from college or even their trade schools, the understanding of their skill is limited. The best part about this, is that as missionaries we have such a wide open field to plow, plant and one day harvest. It’s very exciting to us.

Back to my original topic of renovation.  As I spent time the Lord this morning, I realized just how much our faith journey is like a renovation project.  When we are in the throws of a renovation project sometimes we have a hard time making heads or tails of the mess that is being made. If you are dealing with an older home, you may find that you start your renovation project only to find seven other things that need fixed along the way. Isn’t that kind of like how our faith journey can go sometimes? We can’t see the vision for the finished product because we are too busy seeing the mess, or as we walk through the one thing the Lord has us working on fixing and then it feels like seven other things crop in there that need adjusting too.  I frequently find myself telling God that I can’t find Him because I’m too busy looking at the messiness of my life and I just feel overwhelmed by how much fixing really needs done. 

It’s funny how short sighted and impatient we can become with the process. God is not in a hurry with this renovation project of our faith. In fact, the slower He takes us, the more gentle the other fixes will seem to us if we embrace God’s speed at the project. In that same vein, the slower He takes us, the more detailed He can become, in other words, the more like Him He has the ability to make us. This makes me wonder why I am in such a hurry to get through this renovation of my faith. The more I rush Him the less detail He is able to add. What a loving Heavenly Father we have, He knows what He is doing.

“Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” Hebrews 12:2

In the times of renovation in our faith journey we are called to fix, or focus our eyes on Jesus, to not get distracted by the mess that is all around us right now. Why? Because He is the author and perfecter of our faith. He is renovating our faith into something better and more beautiful than it was before, something that will be unrecognizable, if we only allow Him to work in His timing and at His pace.

“For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” Ephesians 2:10

Isn’t it comforting to know that Christ is working on us to create something special. He has a unique and especially chosen plan for your life. Ephesians 2 calls these plans “good works.” I just love the fact that God is handcrafting me, and He is handcrafting you as well! He sees the end result even when all we can see is chaos. It helps me to be less anxious about where my faith renovation is going to know that God has a clear vision and He never misses even the smallest detail.

Father, I thank you that among the mess of this faith renovation you are in the process of creating something beautiful. No matter how messy this thing gets, the end result will be well worth every change we need to make in the process. How humbling it is to know that you are the author and perfecter of this renovation project, a project that you promise to bring to completion in your perfect timing. Help us to step back and allow you to take out the things that should not be in our temples and allow you to add the things that should. Make us more like you each and every day. In your precious name we pray.