Not Done Yet!

The sidewalks around our neighborhood are a mess. Throughout the neighborhood, areas of concrete are being tore up and poured again. This has been an unending process. Even though they were all newly poured within the last two years, much of them have cracked and crumbled when faced with the snow, ice, and salt of this past winter.  There must have been some flaw or inconsistency in what was originally poured.  Regardless of the reason, multiple days this week, our neighborhood has been flooded with workers replacing large fragments of the sidewalk.  This is how it has gone for us, in a new development and in a new home. It is still a work in progress. There are still things to fix, things to improve, things to add.  This is not unique to a new build. No doubt your homes have the unending, ever-present “work in progress” list of chores of and upkeep.
 
In the Bible, Paul writes “… And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.” (Philippians 1:6)   Paul uplifts and encourages the young church by reminding them that they are a work in progress.  Until Jesus returns or calls us home, not one of us will ever be perfect or without blemish. The conditions of this life’s more difficult seasons, will leave us cracked and crumbling at times.  To put it bluntly, sometimes we are just a mess. But God promises us many things—that we are loved in spite of our flaws, forgiven for all of our mistakes, and that He is always picking up the pieces of our lives and making us to be a new creation.  This is the gracious work of God towards us; that though we are sinners, He doesn’t give up on us. He sees us as a work in progress. God is constantly remaking us, tearing up the old and pouring in the new. 

“I am currently under construction. God is not done with me. Thank you for your patience.”