Remodeling Creates a Lot of Dust!

We made three trips up to this cabin in the mountains, when he had hoped to have it done in two trips!

The first time we were there about four days, the second time two days, and then yesterday we were there just one day, having driven up after spending the morning and afternoon helping at Denver.

The church was basically on our way to the cabin, so that was handy.

 Three different inspectors came in yesterday to check off various inspections on the permit. Here at the beginning of the job, Jonathan got the walls framed for the powder room in the loft.

He cut down the three-layered pipe going up from the gas fireplace.

Timmy  measured two-by-fours.

They drywalled after framing, Timmy helping in between schoolwork during the day.

Here is one corner from the outside (in the bedroom) after the drywalling on the outside wall was done.

Talk about dust in the air ! (I spent hours cleaning yesterday, washing curtains, dusting, scrubbing!)

Two of Jonathan's work guys traveled up with Sam and helped with cutting out a door in the wall and many other things. There was still much left to do, but the framing was done, and the outer walls drywalled and would soon be mudded and painted.

Sometimes our lives need a bit of a remodel, unless, of course, you are one of those people who is never wrong, can't accept any criticism (or anything imperfect in the other person) and at some spiritual high point of your life suddenly and instantaneously became superior to 99.999% of the rest of the population, including the population in the church.

No one has ever doubted that behold, you (along with perhaps, possibly, and maybe unlikely your spouse and two other people) are the one and only Mr. or Mrs. Perfect with every hair in place, every i dotted and every t crossed, who never does anything in the flesh or makes any sort of mistake and never, ever sins.

The rest of us are--well, pretty dusty.

In those instances where you may be an ordinary human Christian like the rest of us, 

there are times when we need to make changes to our little earthen cabin. 

Correcting problems, deleting bad character qualities or adding and building good character qualities is not an easy matter. First of all, we have to admit that we need a bit of remodeling and who wants to admit your cute little cabin isn't perfect?

Second, it is a lot of work, and who wants to have to work hard?

Aren't we just supposed to let Jesus do all the work--while we watch video games and browse Facebook and read or write blogs and talk on the phone and gossip about the people who aren't perfect like us?

Thirdly, it requires change, and who wants to leave his comfort zone, climb out of his deep rut, or mess up his cozy little cabin and actually change something?

Isn't the cabin good enough with just one bathroom?

Plus, we all know that it is always the other guy who needs to change, remodel, and fix his messy little cabin!

Also, usually, quite a mess and quite a bit of dust is created in the process of changing something.

It is much easier to just leave things the way they are and keep clean, safe, and secure.

It is much too hard to humble ourselves or take risks or work hard and trust God and make changes by the grace of God.

It is also much too hard and risky to talk to someone else about possible improvements or changes or corrections you both need to make in your lives or in the relationship between you and them. 

It is much easier (at least temporarily) to ignore problems and pretend they do not exist.

The mess and the dust and the hurt feelings are too much bother.
We don't like to deal with any hurt feelings, so we must leave everything the way it is--even though hurt feelings are simmering underneath anyway on a regular basis. 
On the other hand, we may discover that while there are things we need to take risks for and work on remodeling in our life or character, there may be other areas where we need to learn to rest more in the Lord.

When the dust has settled, masking tape is taken down after painting, drywall mud has been washed off the doorways, and things are put to rights the best we can at the time,

we really don't need to carry the weight of the world on our shoulders.

God really is the One Who will take care of the impossibilities related to our cabins,
our problems, and our remodels. 

It really is He Who makes us into His image.
Hard as we may try, it's only as we trust in Him to do what we can't do that it really turns out to be a pretty fantastic remodel job!