Fixer Upper
When I was a young girl my parents remodeled the kitchen in the tiny little house I grew up in on County Line Road. The kitchen was completely ripped apart and we had to do dishes in the bathroom. I come from a family of six. It was a long summer! This past year I feel like that old kitchen. I’ve been under construction. I was one of those dilapidated houses with good bones and great potential. This was a year of remodeling. If you’re an avid HGTV watcher, like me, you know that the biggest problems with any home remodel are hidden, unseen to the naked eye. A freshly painted wall easily hides faulty wiring. The true problems are revealed when you knock down the walls. If you don’t fix the foundation first, the rest of the house will not stand. Remodeling is slow, painful, and certainly never easy. You often wonder if you’ll ever be done.
That’s how I feel this week. I’m thrilled to be at goal, but in my heart, I know the number on the scale doesn’t tell the whole story of what’s happening inside these bones. The get real truth is the weight loss is just a side effect of the real transformation God is doing in my life. The biggest changes are happening with the foundation and faulty wiring. Now that I’m at my goal weight, I feel in a lot of ways, the work is just beginning. Life is full of unexpected events, changes, and uncertainty. Sometimes those changes are exciting and wonderful, and sometimes they are devastating, painful, and hard. We have to remember that it is in those times of change that we grow and progress the most in our lives. I’m working hard to stay true to my feelings, and not fall back into old ways. I know God has bigger plans in store for me but it means I must keep moving in the right direction.
“Imagine yourself as a living house. God comes in to rebuild that house. At first, perhaps, you can understand what He is doing. He is getting the drains right and stopping the leaks in the roof and so on; you knew that those jobs needed doing and so you are not surprised. But presently He starts knocking the house about in a way that hurts abominably and does not seem to make any sense. What on earth is He up to? The explanation is that He is building quite a different house from the one you thought of –throwing out a new wing here, putting on an extra floor there, running up towers, making courtyards. You thought you were being made into a decent little cottage: but He is building a palace. He intends to come and live in it Himself.”
― C.S. Lewis Mere Christianity
The therapeutic musings of sharing my thoughts each week provides a heartfelt refuge. The get real truths provide a relief on my heart. Sharing what is troubling me, while I seek to find answers and clarity, brings me comfort. What I learn each week is different, but there’s one thing that remains a constant, we are all in this together. I’m reminded each and every week that I’m not alone. Perhaps you’re not struggling with losing weight, or keeping it off, but we are all in this life together. We all are under construction in some way. I feel strongly this is what being a human being is all about, and why God created us to have this experience.
The tearing down process is messy, it’s hard, and it reveals way more than you ever intended. The get real truth is that the life God has in store for you is so much greater than what you could even imagine for yourself. Perhaps my extensive renovation is still in progress because I was content with a decent little cottage. God has something entirely different in mind. We have assurance that God is building us each into something beautiful that is worthy of His name. That may be difficult to hold on to. I know a year ago I would have truly struggled with this concept. “Don't you know you are a temple of God, and the Spirit of God dwells in you? (I Corinthians 3:16.) Every single day I still have to tell myself that I am worthy. I am a child of God, and worthy of this experience. I tell myself that I am worthy to receive what God has planned for me. I am His child, and so are you.
Brene’ Brown said, “You are imperfect, you are wired for struggle, but your are worthy of love and belonging.” Michelangelo was once asked what he was trying to create as he chipped away at a shapeless rock. He replied, “I am liberating an angel from this stone.” I believe that’s what God is doing with us. He is making us into what we can be. Perhaps we’re always under construction until we reach heaven. John 14:3 says, “And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.” God is preparing a place for you, too. Maybe you are facing a setback right now, a crisis, or maybe it just seems that nothing is ever going to change. Remember, you are a work in progress. You are under construction. Don’t resist what God is trying to do. You are also worthy. He’s building a palace!
Brene’ Brown said, “You are imperfect, you are wired for struggle, but your are worthy of love and belonging.” Michelangelo was once asked what he was trying to create as he chipped away at a shapeless rock. He replied, “I am liberating an angel from this stone.” I believe that’s what God is doing with us. He is making us into what we can be. Perhaps we’re always under construction until we reach heaven. John 14:3 says, “And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.” God is preparing a place for you, too. Maybe you are facing a setback right now, a crisis, or maybe it just seems that nothing is ever going to change. Remember, you are a work in progress. You are under construction. Don’t resist what God is trying to do. You are also worthy. He’s building a palace!
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