Fresh Coat of Paint

Weekend projects are in my blood. Home Depot was my home away from home as child, and a place I spent many of my Saturday mornings. From the simple projects of putting paint on a wall or moving around furniture to laying tile floors and making backsplashes. The satisfaction of checking off a project provided SO much rejuvenation. 

Transformation. 

Painting–it all starts with a gallon of paint and dash of motivation to revamp a room. Pictures and art from past decorations must be taken down and the holes filled and then sanded down. The next step is outlining the room with a brush, a tedious but necessary task. With drop cloths covering the ground, the walls can then be saturated using a roller covered in paint. Sometimes it takes two or three coats to evenly cover the space and cover up a dark color that previously stood.  

 Life with Jesus is a whole lot like painting a room. 

Jesus is transformative, he covers you in love like a fresh coat of paint. But life before Jesus is confusing and driven by a consuming worry of self image. We become a safe harbor for anchors of grief, worry, stress, anxiety, and more blemishes than our mind can fathom. Our walls become covered in markings that we would rather not acknowledge. It's overwhelming...BUT with Jesus, we are made new. The holes in our walls, the marks from where furniture left a scratch, or the place where a child accidentally created an original piece of art, are painted over. Dark colors are turned light, and there is an overwhelming feeling of freshness, a new beginning. When we enter a relationship with Jesus, we are born again, made new and given a new start–a blank slate!!

"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come:

The old has gone, the new is here!"

2 Corinthians 5:17

With Jesus our blemishes are taken away; however, there are times where dents or markings can't be fully repaired. My mom likes to say these spots contribute to the "character," of the room. While these things can't be fully restored to previous condition, they are stilled covered in the paint, "Jesus." It's part of our testimony, what leads us to Jesus and is used by Jesus to show his compassion for us. 

At times painting can get tiring and we want to give up. After about two walls we wonder, what's the point? It looked okay before... but we have to keep trucking because a half painted room is not part of the design plan (and let's be honest, it just doesn't look good). With Jesus we aren't left as a half finished project finished, he covers us in more love than we could imagine. He finishes the job and makes touch ups to ensure we are FULLY loved and are covered so we can share his love with others. 

I'm glad I've been painted with Jesus and that my blemishes and scars can now be used to further his Kingdom, it's all part of my story and one I'm glad I get to share!!

Josh Garrels "Born Again" //

I cry at your feet, wounded for me

And all of the monsters and men

But here in your light

We can begin again

I'm my mother's child

I'm my father's son

It took me a while

But my time has come

To be born again