Tuesday, September 28, 2021

Week Thirty-Nine - A Fixer-Upper

I love those fixer-upper house shows. Since I always wanted to be an architect and design houses, I marvel at what they can do and want to get my hands dirty with them. I still have a dream of building my own tiny house someday. Maybe the Lord will grant my wish, maybe not, but I still enjoy watching others.

Today's devotional reading reminded me that though we are his children, we choose where we live - in the flesh or in the Spirit. The application sounded like a fixer-upper. Here's some of what it said.

"It must astonish God that many of us neglect our source and revert to the insufficiency of human ingenuity and resourcefulness, when we have a supernatural source readily available...We are so accustomed to our old nature - it is comfortable despite its weakness - that we forget to invite the power of God to live in us."

How often are we guilty of living in our comfort zone - even to our detriment - just because we have grown used to our old nature? It's like the people in those shows. They've grown accustomed to the odd floors, creaking doors, and broken faucets. But the time has come to call in help - to fix things up. They have come to the end of themselves and are calling in the pros!

If we are living in the flesh, we are going to face the same dilemma. Our status-quo will grow tiresome, and we will see and feel the cracks and creaks in our lives, sounds that remind us things aren't as they could be.

It's time to bring in the Heavenly Repair Man! To vacate self and let Him do a work in our lives. We need some fresh light, some foundation work, more doors of service, some rearranging, a welcoming entry, space for hospitality, and all evidence of the old man removed. We need a complete renovation.

How does it happen? We must turn over the keys and step aside. We must yield to the Professional's advice and trust Him to do the work we cannot do ourselves. Our part is called humility and repentance.

"Oh, Lord, come in and cleanse this house. Make me over anew. Shine light into this darkened space and put Your stamp on my life. I'm tired of living with patched walls and broken stairs. I need Your capable hand to reconstruct and renovate this life You have given me. I choose, Lord, to live in Your Spirit. Fix me up!

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