THE NEW EWE

"What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one which is lost, until he finds it? And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbors, saying to them, 'Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost!'"

Luke 15:4-6

October 11, 2023

LIFE IN THE FOLD

I was recently re-reading some older newsletters that I had written and found one where Jon and I were in the middle of a bathroom remodeling project. One of my nephews was also remodeling his kitchen at the time. We had been visiting about the mess that remodeling brings and he said, "It has to get ugly before it gets pretty."

That quote is so very true! There is really no way you can do a remodeling project without making a mess and demolishing the old, in order to make room for the new. That means that you have to go through a period of looking at the ugliness.

The first major remodeling project that Jon and I did together was in our living room. There was a huge black fireplace in the middle of the floor with bricks circling it, about seat-height where people could sit. Jon's parents had built it years ago when they had owned the house and there is a story behind it that the family all enjoyed. I wasn't there for the building of it and didn't have the memories, so when Jon and I moved into the house, after we got married, and then later bought the house, one of the first things I wanted to do was get rid of it; and Jon was in agreement with me.

I didn't want to hurt feelings, but also, wanted to make this house our own where we could make our own memories. That fireplace took up so much room and the wooden black box on the ceiling part and the big metal fireplace were just all so..... big and so black! I like being able to see out windows and it blocked a lot of light from the front living room windows and just made it feel more closed in and smaller.

Jon and I began the huge task of demolishing the old fireplace; which ended up taking a long time and being a much bigger project than we thought. We had to remove the chimney that went through the second floor and out the roof. But due to us scheduling to have the shingles replaced on the roof, we thought it was a good time to do this, so they could cover over that hole at the same time.

Finally, we got it all demolished.... and all those bricks and black metal and wood were all piled in our backyard. Jon's cousin owns businesses and dump trucks and we were able to hire his crew to come and haul it off for us.

We had a big hole cut out of our living room carpet where the brick had been. There was a hole in our ceiling where the chimney had been. And it wasn't pretty! But it looked better than it had during the middle of demolition.

Little by little we installed what we wanted, painted, had new living room carpet installed, the hole in the roof was covered and new shingles put on. What we replaced that big black fireplace with looked more homey (to me) and opened up the living room and didn't take up near as much room. It allows more light and I can better see out the front windows when I'm sitting on the other side of the room.

I think it made Jon's parents, especially his dad, a little sad that we had demolished the old fireplace; but we did a remodel that better fit Jon and I and was something that the two of us designed together. Seeing the end results made all the mess and ugliness worth it!

Sometimes in life we can go through some personal "remodeling" and "demolition" that can look a little ugly during the process. Not only does it look a little ugly, but it can feel pretty messy inside. But in order for us to become the person that God is shaping and forming, we have to endure that process.

Friends and family may not always understand the transformation and ask, "Why didn't you stay the same? Why do you have to give up those things or change?" It may even make them a little uncomfortable, because you're becoming someone different than who they wanted you to be. You may be giving up some sinful habits or choices that you no longer want to be a part of, and it makes them uncomfortable. They may not understand what God is doing in your heart and the changes upsets them or makes them angry. That unease may be a reflection of the conviction that they themselves are experiencing and they don't want to deal with it; so they try to convince you that you're okay and don't need to make any changes, hoping that their own personal conviction with go away.

Isaiah 64:8 says, "Yet you, Lord, are our Father. We are the clay, You are the potter; we are all the work of Your hand."

Jeremiah writes in chapter 18, verses 1-6, "The Lord gave another message to Jeremiah. He said, 'Go down to the potter's shop, and I will speak to you there.' So I did as He told me and found the potter working at the wheel. But the jar he was making did not turn out as he had hoped, so he crushed it into a lump of clay again and started over. Then the Lord gave me this message, 'O Israel, can I not do to you as this potter has done to his clay? As the clay is in the potter's hand, so are you in My hand.'"

Sometimes we may not turn out as God, our Potter, desired. It's not that He did a bad job, but that we perhaps were resistant in His hands or had "stuff" mixed in with our clay that prevented something beautiful from being created in our life.

Look at the verse in Jeremiah: even though the jar that the potter was making didn't turn out as he had hoped, he didn't throw the clay away and get rid of it. He crushed it and started over.

God is the Potter and we are the works of His hand. But there are times when He may have to crush us and start over shaping and molding us, because we aren't turning out as He had hoped and He knows that we can be much better. Sin and impurities prevented us from being a strong, useful vessel. He never throws us away and gets rid of us, but by crushing us, His desire is to rid us of all the impurities and imperfections that are causing us to be weak and unusable.

When the Potter is working on and in us, sometimes it gets ugly before it gets pretty! Sometimes we have to reach a place of desperation before we are pliable in His hands. The demolition and remodeling stages aren't desirable and aren't exciting and appealing. But they are necessary!

Even as we mature as a christian, there are still times when we have to go through that "ugly" remodeling stage spiritually. We can become so accustomed and comfortable with traditions or get into a spiritual rut that we become old and tired and useless in the Kingdom of God. We begin to look spiritually ratty and tattered and faded. We need renewal and the fire in our spirit to be rekindled. We need joy in our relationship with the Lord. We need our passion for God and His Word to be restored.

In order for that to happen, we have to go through that pruning and the refiners fire and having some things stripped away, in order for restoration to happen. It may look ugly and feel painful, but the end result will be worth it! God will make something beautiful and worthwhile of your life!

JON'S PERSPECTIVE:

For many of our remodeling projects, I knew where I was going with it, but didn't draw it out or really explain it well enough for Loretta to know where I was going with it. I was sure of how good it would look... eventually. But Loretta just had to trust me that I knew what I was doing, and would make it good.

When God is doing a work in us, we just have to trust He knows what He is doing, and that it will be great. It will be to bring Him glory, and for our good along the way.

And just like our remodeling projects, you have to be very patient.

ON THE MENEWE:

Best Broccoli Cheese Soup Ever

Cover vegetables with water and cook until tender. Add milk.

Make roux; which you can make your own by using 1/2 cup butter and 1/2 cup flour and cook together.

Add roux to soup, along with the half and half.

Add Velveeta and stir constantly, so it melts and doesn't stick.

Sprinkle with white pepper over the entire pot.

You can use an immersion or hand blender, if you prefer a smoother soup without the vegetable chunks in it.

THIS, THAT AND THE OTHER:

We've had our dog for 11 years now. Everyone in my family were very surprised when Jon and I got a puppy! I had always said that I did not want a dog, and I sure didn't want a house dog. Jon and I had no intention of buying a puppy the day that we got him. We had taken my sister, Janie, to go pick up her puppy. When the lady brought Sammie out, I instantly fell in love with him -- he was so tiny and so cute!! It didn't take Jon long to agree. Sammie has brought us a lot of joy these past 11 years.

Shortly after we brought him home, I was vacuuming the living room and afterwards could not find Sammie anywhere. I knew he was inside the house somewhere and looked and looked and called to him, with no results. I finally found him curled up underneath one of our recliners. The noise of the vacuum had apparently scared him and that was a place he felt safe. He was only about 3-4 pounds and so little at that time, so was able to crawl underneath that chair to hide. I didn't want to sit down in a chair and squish him, so was determined to find him!

It's amazing how you can become so attached to a pet! We certainly have enjoyed our little guy.

THOUGHT TO PONDER:

Ponder how valuable your soul must be for Satan to tirelessly pursue it,

and the King (Jesus) to lay down His own life for it. - unknown

OUR HEARTFELT THANKS TO YOU:

We love you!

Loretta & Jon

http://www.graysheep.org