The other day I was stripping WALLPAPER from my daughter's bedroom wall. The first layer came off with ease. I triumphed over the dreaded wallpaper. Then, came the glue. I rubbed and squirted hot water with fabric softener on the wall and scraped away the pieces. Some pieces came off in huge strips, while other pieces clung to the wall as if they somehow felt the pain of being released from their formal address. After my arm hurt and I had scraped away a lot, I switched to acidic vinegar and even more came off the wall. For the most part, it was clear and ready for painting. I scrubbed the wall profusely to attempt the remove the gummy residue that still clung to the porous drywall. At last, I was ready to paint. I got my materials and set off to coat that wall with regal purple fit for my princess.
During this excruciating process, God drew many parallels. My first temptation was to just paint over the wallpaper and not even go through the work of removing it. The problem is that doesn't work. The paint will shimmy itself right off the wall over time! The same is true with relationships, and life in general. It is so tempting to just gloss over the old and give a facelift. I think of the people I know, myself included, who tried to have a new relationship before doing the work of healing from the past. Didn't work! I think of how people try to spend their way to happiness and use credit cards to pay their bills because they don't want to do the work of getting out of debt. It doesn't work! We are being MADE a new creation and we are already a new creation in Christ. The mystery just gives me goosebumps!
My next temptation was to not remove the glue or to take other shortcuts. Once again, that doesn't work. Anything less than digging in and getting rid of all the pieces of the wallpaper will result in paint chipping off the wall little by little. Even after the process of removal, it has taken multiple paint coats to get the desired effect. The beauty is worth the result; just like the beauty of squirming around in a chrysalis by a caterpillar produces a breathtaking butterfly or a the beauty of a wildfire releases the seed trapped within and new life shoots out to form a new forest. It isn't what it used to be, but it is so much healthier and gorgeous because the process was embraced.
God is doing a good work in each of us. Our role is to rest in faith in Him and allow Him to scrape, burn, squirt with vinegar, and apply the coats necessary to our lives. The work will not be finished this side of heaven, but any attempts to shortcut it leaves undesired results. Sure, some paint sticks to the wall, but I want all of the wall to be regal purple for the princess in my life; and so does He. So as for me, I rest in His hands. Do as you will Lord, I trust you! How about you?
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