Where's my belt? Lessons from a home renovation

Jon: "Babe, have you seen my belt?"
Me: "Umm...no. Where did you last see it?" (a perfectly legitimate question by the way)
Jon: "Well..." Thinks for a minute while looking around, "it was in a box on the floor in the living room."
Me: Looking around, making my 'ugly face', "really...a box on the floor huh? That really narrows it down."
Jon: "Perhaps I will just wear different pants."
Me: "Yeah. Good plan."

They say a picture is worth a thousand words, but truthfully, trying to capture the chaos in this photograph is like trying to capture the intense beauty of a sunset over the Grand Canyon with an old school Polaroid camera. Every corner of my home is in a state of unrest. There are boxes and baskets everywhere. Sheets of Sheetrock and rolls of carpet have become fixtures in the common living spaces while our bed is tucked away neatly in a corner of the living room (behind the lovely entertainment stand that has become a toy/book shelf). Our piano and dresser have become part of the dining room decor while the future half bathroom has become more of a utility closet. Some days I can easily remember that this is all temporary while other days I swear I need a padded room. Those days seem to be more and more common.

I have to say that at moments, this is what my heart and head look like as well. I feel as though my emotions are askew and my relationships are far from what they should be. Where there should be harmony there is discord. Where laughter ought to be, most days you will find frustration and disappointment. It is easy for finances to be mismanaged, time to be of short supply and the toilet is always dirty. There are times when it feels as though it doesn't matter how hard you try, you'll still come up a day late and a dollar short.

As I was spending time in God's Word there were a couple of verses that spoke truth to my heart. As I sat amidst the mess and chaos feeling as though my very walls were closing in on me, the words of Apostle Paul and the Prophet Isaiah encouraged my weary heart.

"So we do not lose heart. 

Though our outer nature is wasting away,

our inner nature is being renewed day by day.

For this slight and momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory

beyond all comparison,

as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen.

For the things that are seen are transient,

but the things that are unseen are eternal."

2 Corinthians 4: 16-18

"You [God] will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, 

because they trust in You."

Isaiah 26: 3

"And I am sure of this,

that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion

at the day of Jesus Christ." 

Philippians 1: 6

With tears in my eyes I looked around and thanked God for what He was doing in my heart. I am thankful for His faithful instruction and His correction, even though it hurts sometimes. I am thankful that this is temporary--everything on earth is temporary. Not only is there an end to my chaos, there is an ultimate end to the chaos and strife of earth. I am thankful that although I want the end result now, I am reminded that God still has work to do. As the Master Carpenter, He loves me the way I am but He refuses to leave me that way. When I am weary you can remind me that He is faithful, all of this is temporary and just like my home renovation, His work in my heart will one day be complete. In the meantime, I will stay in God's Word, do my best to encourage others and perhaps I will try to help my husband find his belt. 

<><tce