Encountering an extraordinary God in ordinary life
Issue # 222 August 07, 2001
Delayed Maintenance

I spent a good part of yesterday cleaning my boat. I have it up for sale, because there is no place to park it at the new house.

A sound boat, it was just showing the signs of not enough time spent in maintenance. It runs well, but looked a little worn. It needed cleaning, waxing, polishing and general tidying.

When I was done, it gleamed in the sun and looked ten years newer.

It was kind of the same as we got the house ready to sell. Lots of minor repairs that we needed to do. Nothing substantial in itself, just lots of little things. When we were done, the house looked cleaner, brighter and fresher.

I started thinking how easy it is to become complacent, to not notice the little things that need doing. To become comfortable with the small repairs undone.

Then I started to think of the cumulative effect of all those little repairs. How something new and fresh becomes old and stale because the small things were left undone.

It’s like that in our spiritual life as well. There are lots of small areas that we know God is calling us to be faithful or obedient in that we overlook. Some day, some time, when we have the time, we’ll get around to doing them.

I have to wonder if it hurts Him to see us like that. We are wonderful creations, that He invested eternity in, yet we allow ourselves to fall apart slowly, to drift from Him, to become complacent in our faith.

What have you been a little slack about lately? Your prayer? Time in His Word? Your giving?

Maybe it’s a character flaw that you don’t want to hear Him on. A little gossip. A bit of a complaining nature. A cold heart. A foul mouth.

When you accepted Christ, you became new

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! 2 Corinthians 5:17 NIV

Has the new creation become a little like the old one? How’s the maintenance?

Until next time, may you truly open yourself up to the internal remodeling God is calling you to.

God bless.

Kevin