A Little Remodel

Lately, Ken and I have been looking at our kitchen, and it’s clear we need new cabinets—they came with the house back in the late 70s. Of course, talk then turned to the counter top, then the sink, the faucet, and finally, the floor (also installed in the late 70s). We groaned at the thought of it all—sawdust everywhere, cooking on our Coleman stove and workmen coming and going. If only it could be a quick, little remodel, but it’s never that way. 

It’s exactly how God rebuilds our lives. We think He is going to do a little remodel—fixing a few bad habits, cleaning out one or two skeletons in a closet and tweaking an attitude or two. But when we hand God the keys to the front door of our lives, giving Him access into all our rooms and hidden closets, He’s got a bigger idea. C.S. Lewis said,

“Imagine yourself as a living house. God comes in to rebuild that house. At first, perhaps, you understand what He is doing. 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. 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.”

God is not into little remodels of our lives; He’s all about reconstructing things from the foundation up. And what is He building? A temple, a place in which His Spirit can reside. It’s what He longs to do in you and me, friend. So today, give the Holy Spirit the keys to every room in your life. Invite Him to not merely remodel you, but reconstruct every timber in your character — for when He looks at you, He has in mind a palace fit for a King!