The Reno
Hello Saints,
There is a fascination these days with taking something old and decrepit and turning it into something beautiful that causes the owner and onlooker alike to marvel and gasp with delight at the transformation that has happened before their eyes. From the old piece of furniture or rusted out car, to the complete makeover of an entire house and property, it is amazing to me that the renewing of an inanimate object has become such a widespread phenomenon. There are whole networks dedicated to the broadcasting of renovation projects. Like everything else, the “need to change” has been turned into a multi-billion, even multi-trillion-dollar industry. I am continually drawn into watching these addictive shows, mainly because there is nothing else worth watching. But honestly, haven’t we all secretly or openly coveted/desired/wished that we could renew even one room in our abode, or maybe a total do-over according to our liking. If I’m honest, my favorites are taking old cars out of junk yards and restoring them to their former glory. I have friends who are in the renovation industry and am amazed at what they can do with a modest home or an old item that was headed for the dumpster but is now a featured focal point in their home. It has given hope to every self-proclaimed do-it-yourselfer who owns a set of tools and a sander! The reno industry does not stop at cars, furniture and houses…it has even carried over to transforming people. There are complete makeover shows dedicated to taking random strangers off the street and giving them a whole new look – hair, makeup and clothes renewed – and the old “bum” now looks like a Wall Street executive. And yes…there are television shows dedicated to transforming the inside of a person too. The way they think and act and respond to situations is the fascination of many a television counselor…think Dr. Phil. In a way, the more one thinks about it, the more one realizes that people are generally never content with what they have nor with where they are at personally. The transformation industry, whether physical, material, or internally personal, seems to have become an obsession – everyone desires to change something about themselves. Behind this whole desire is the spirit of mammon – the money sucking demon of greed. But I digress.
I continue to be amazed and awed by the transformation God can do in people, and yet I should not because this is our God! He loves people, and He loves us so much that He does not want to leave us as we are. I could sit and watch a show about how God has transformed people (the odd one is out there to find), hearing their testimonies of freedom, brought from wretchedness to royalty; from rejected to accepted, from fearful to bold in the Lord; from nobodies in the junkyard called “discarded” to children of the living God. This weekend was one of those weekends where I have stood and beheld the renovation power of Almighty God to take wandering sinners and turn them into trophies of His grace. I am reminded of all the passages and stories of transformation in the Bible – of God taking ordinary men and woman and ‘elevating’ them from an object used by men to a queen or king in the King’s house. This is the Master Renovator’s great work – taking “junk” and turning them into masterpieces (Eph. 2:10). As Paul expressed so passionately as he penned the 2nd letter to the Corinthians, thinking of the great work God had done in these believers: “What this means is that those who become Christians become new persons. They are not the same anymore, for the old life is gone. A new life has begun! All this newness of life is from God, who brought us back to himself through what Christ did” (2Cor. 5:17-18 NLT). It is not the first time Paul is amazed by God’s reno work. In his first letter to the Corinthian church after listing their past sins he writes, “There was a time when some of you were just like that, but now your sins have been washed away, and you have been set apart for God. You have been made right with God because of what the Lord Jesus Christ and the Spirit of our God have done for you (1Cor. 6:11 NLT). Did you get that? The whole Trinity is involved in our reno project – Father, Son and Spirit! We are reno projects in progress, going from glory to glory, on display for the whole world to see: “And all of us have had that veil removed so that we can be mirrors that brightly reflect the glory of the Lord. And as the Spirit of the Lord works within us, we become more and more like Him and reflect His glory even more” (2Cor. 3:18 NLT). What a faithful God we have who assures us that we are being renewed into His resemblance. This renewal, renovation, transformation happens as we voluntarily allow the Potter to finish the work of creating something beautiful. Our part is to agree with the Designer that this “old” has to go, and a “new” needs to happen – and friends, that may be the hardest part of our transformation – letting go of the old: “throw off your old evil nature and your former way of life, which is rotten through and through, full of lust and deception. Instead, there must be a spiritual renewal of your thoughts and attitudes. You must display a new nature because you are a new person, created in God's likeness -- righteous, holy, and true” (Eph. 4:22-24 NLT; see Col. 3:1-10). Do you wonder how you can be renewed and renovated by God? It starts in the mind – we need to surrender ourselves to the Lord to fashion us into His image, and that requires a mind reno: “And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice -- the kind He will accept. When you think of what He has done for you, is this too much to ask? Don't copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think” (Rom. 12:1-2 NLT; Eph. 4:23).
The wonderful thing about this Renovator is that He is committed to us till the end - He won’t stop until the job is done – what He starts, He finishes! He knows our needs better than we do. He won’t take our deposit and run, He will actually move into our house and stay there, telling us what needs to be tweaked as we go…we just need to listen. And if at anytime we get discouraged with how long the project is taking, or the mess we have discovered as the remodeling occurs, He knows how to encourage us to persevere and press on till the work is done. Now friends, we can also encourage one another as they undergo their own reno project by celebrating the transformation that has already taken place. If you are in Christ, you don’t have to have cable or a television to see this reno show, just look in the mirror!
Have a blessed week!
"Advancing the Kingdom of God by releasing Spirit-filled followers to serve Jesus in freedom and joy."
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