The Christian Remodeling Project

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article by Dan Dowd

Before I was hired into the full-time ministry, my wife and I decided to do one last big project on our house in Rhode Island.

We had never liked the setup between the kitchen and the family room—there were too many doors and windows to make effective use of the space.

We set about demolishing the wall and then subsequently repairing the adjacent walls. The dust from cutting, sanding, dry walling, etc., infiltrated the whole house. Everything—and I mean everything—had dust on it. It took us six months to finish the project and put the house back in order.

Often to improve something, we must first make a mess. Our calling in Christ is similar. God has called us to change from our carnal nature to His nature (Romans 8:5). He has also called us to grow in His knowledge and understanding (2 Peter 3:18). When God calls us to follow Him, we are to begin the process of "remodeling" ourselves to be more and more like the Father, taking on the mind of Christ (Philippians 2:5).

Like remodeling a house, becoming a true Christian will at times be messy. To become something better requires undoing much of what is already there. Even in new construction there can be a great deal of mess, but God is most interested in the end result. God calls us out of sin and encourages us to take on His character.

Change in any situation in life can be uncomfortable. Our spiritual transformation from carnal nature to God's righteousness is especially challenging. But like remodeling, if we focus on the end result, the interim can be endured. And like remodeling, the messy portion is necessary for improvement to be possible.

God has given us a vision of an awesome future if we are willing to yield to His righteous character. We can rejoice that God has called us to be part of His family, which is worth more than the struggle in the meantime. UN

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