A New Coat of Paint .......

I'm in the early stages of redecorating my guest bedroom.  I'm changing four green walls, two very dark green, two that are a backpack green,  to a pale yellow though not as pale as intended.( By the way and note to self again, the rule with yellow paint is always go a shade lighter than the one you want)

Everything has been moved out of the room, tarps are covering the rug, tape runs along the edge of the window. Holes have been patched, filled and sanded, base boards wiped down. Bob and I have managed to get two coats of fresh paint applied. I'm so excited to see if the plans I've envisioned  for my  guest bedroom turn out as planned.  I'm hoping that upon completion my guests will feel drawn into it and feel as though its a true place of retreat. A soft place to fall, a safe and comfortable place to lay their heads...

When I'm done my guest bedroom will still be my guest bedroom, it is just slowly changing into the retreat it was meant to be for my guests,  a place to feel at home and rested.  This process made me think about the work in progress I am in my walk with God.  Before making Him my priority in life, I was similar to the dark green of my walls....very little light or brightness in the body of that room!  I  was lacking the kind of peace that provides the light that now shines through me.  That light is the Spirit of God in me.

Like the room when I started this project, God takes us just as we are, with holes that need to be filled, rough spots to be sanded,  a little tape and even a good wipe down is in order.  We don't have to fix all these areas that have fallen to the way side over time before we can approach Him. Those holes in us that might have been made long ago, the ones we feel even God couldn't forgive let alone fill.... He can and He will.   If we would take the time to study who He is we would discover all that He has promised each of us. There is this notion that we have to change before we come to Him, well, its just that, a notion.

Most of us don't think of ourselves as sinners but we are, each and everyone.  If you were to read the 10 commandments you would see that you and I have likely failed at more than one of them.  It doesn't mean we are bad people, it means we aren't perfect and are in  need of forgiveness. With that comes the promise of an eternal life, one other than what we are living at this time, in this world.  There is something after death, I mean seriously, after all that was created and intended for us to enjoy, this world we are living is not all He has for us.  He has provided us with a retreat of our own  and it is with Him.

God is the one who will slowly fill those holes, sands the rough edges, wipes the dust off and reveals a person of beauty that He calls His own.....that would be us!  So He can fill the holes, He is the light that then shines through us. Others will notice the change in place of the once dark walls, the little holes of our past are now filled and we are shining bright and new because of it. We become a light in this world of darkness so that others might see it and come to know Him too.

Similar to the results I'm hoping for in my guest room, I too hope that others can see God's light in me.  It is where He is, with Him that I am drawn to.  He is my light in the darkness, my place of retreat, a soft place to fall, a safe place to lay my head.

 I'm reminded that God is the painter (artist) and we are His canvas.  He will make the needed repairs and  apply a fresh coat of paint .... Our past forgiven and forgotten, what once was old becomes new!

Like my guestroom, I am a work in process. Also like my guest bedroom, God had a plan in mind when He envisioned me in a specific way, I hope that I turn out as He planned.. So when I go to the retreat He has prepared for me I will hear that He is pleased.  This is what echos from my heart today......