Demolition, Renovation, Randomness & Christmas

We started a home renovation project last week. (Yes, that's crazy at Christmas, but the crews needed the work and we wanted to be sure we were finished by the time school gets out for Summer). The purpose of the renovation is to build another bedroom so each child has their own 'space,' and are not all sharing the same bathroom. It is not as big of an issue now as it will be in a few years, but K is quite modest (yay!!) and she is "so tired of always sitting down on boy tee tee!" I get that.

I am so thankful that I do not want to complain. I would however like to document a bit about the process this week--with a sense of humor. -)

The new space is taking the place of my attic and garage, so twice this week I have had knocks on my door from kind workers asking me to clear out the junk. Monday it was at 7:45am--a great time for cleaning out a garage, right? Tuesday it was just as I was loading all the children in the car to run an errand that I heard their request to remove all the contents from the attic. So, with the help of said kind workers, I did.

Trouble is, with no attic and no garage and my very small cellar area currently serving as Santa's Workshop there was really no place to put it...so my clutter abhorring self currently has a master bath stacked with storage boxes and a hallway (or two) lined with random attic contents. Did I mention that all of these things are covered in a thick layer of dust and dryer lint because of a malfunctioning dryer vent? I am so stuffed up that my runny eyes are having trouble focusing on my laptop screen.

I am reminded that growth, expansion and renovation can be messy, inconvenient and costly. I have no doubt that the end product will be worth the hassle...but the process is a real pain.

I am sick. I am tired. My surroundings are in upheaval...but it is temporary. I chose to do this. There is a reward in the end.

This is not always true in the storms of life. Many times we don't get to choose our mess. Often the demolition is a consequence rather than a conscious choice. In many chaotic seasons it is very difficult to see what God is up to and what the ultimate end will be that could possibly justify the means.

Our little town got smacked by dangerous storms this afternoon. They came out of nowhere and caused serious destruction. (None to us, but lots to other people in our community.) It was April weather in the middle of December. Isn't that generally the way that it goes...major life upheaval arriving without warning? Seemingly random occurrences that change the course of our lives?

As we were riding around town tonight surveying the damage, K said, "I wonder what God's up to. This is part of His plan. I wonder why."
While I was still marveling at the faith of children--feeling simultaneously challenged, convicted and inspired--P asked about why God let bad things happen and R started talking to him about the purpose of things "like the plagues because Pharaoh would not let those people go."

Our faith is centered on the belief that it is not random. That God has a greater goal or plan even when we can't comprehend it at all. The demolition of our circumstances is to make way for something better/more needed...holiness.

I thought of Mary. What must it felt like for her to have her very simple, humble life so radically interrupted by the Angel's visit?

I thought of Joseph. His world got rocked. His fiancee bearing a child not from his seed...but from God?

I thought of the Shepherds, quietly serving in their lowly positions out in the dark fields on a silent night, then the sky lit up and their lives were changed for good.

I thought of my own life and the countless times the storms have nearly wrecked me and the renovations to my heart have made me sick and tired.

And I praised God...for not giving up on me...for lovingly restoring me...for caring enough to do the hard work required to make my heart more like His...for entering in rather than pulling away.

This is the message of Christmas.