Extreme Makeover

  

  

Prayer 

 Heavenly Father, you are the Creator and Sustainer of the Universe. Arise, O God let your enemies be scattered. You are my hiding place. Please forgive me for shrinking back in faith when times are hard. Help me not to throw out my confidence because I  know it will be richly rewarded. Help me to perservere and do the will of God even in the challenging times.  In Christ, what matters is new creation. Help us to rejoice when the old passes away and to celebrate the new. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen.  

Extreme Makeover by Veronica Garrett 

Therefore if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation; old things have passed away, and look, new things have come" (2 Corinthians 5:17)

 Christ gives his followers extreme makeovers. Reality television brings great excitement to makeovers. Many are seeking a personal makeover in their hairstyle and dress. And yet others take an ordinary car and turn it into a lively, artistic expression. And some even allow home renovations to occur. 

Homes are torn down and rebuilt. As the bulldozer destroys the old house the homeowner shouts in celebration and expectation.  And in each case the participants are eagerly anticipating the old to be removed followed by a new design.

Many of us want new creation but we don't want old things to pass away. Some of us would like to treasure disobedience, add Christ to our lives and celebrate a new thing. We really don't want old things to pass away. Satan finds great pleasure in my resistance to God's renovation. He knows that my lack of cooperation with the renovation work prevents me from being a bold testimony to the Carpenter's skill.

Phase one of the makeover includes Christ destroying ungodly alliances, unproductive habits, and all that is against His purpose.  His destruction plan demolishes what looks like perfectly good stuff to me. He also demolishes the strongholds in my life.  Most often it's like the mold and termites, the hidden things.  

When I agreed to a makeover I didn't know some things I valued would be destroyed. It appears as though He's trying to kill me because I have emotional ties to some of it. And yet in the mist of destruction He always has His purpose and plans for Phase II, the construction.  

Many avoid buying a house with a bad foundation, termites, or mold.  Jesus Christ is capable of taking what is seemingly useless and transforming me into a new creation.  In fact, any foundation that isn't built on the unshakeable Rock is faulty. Without the chief Cornerstone the building is at best shaky.

At first I have a problem with the destruction. Many people cease all operation because the destruction messes us up. It's as if something strange is happening. He knows what's best for us. He also knows the deep and hiddent things. Although, He destroys things that I thought to be valuable eventually He constructs. He rebuilds something unbelieveable. The old things have passed away and look, I am a new creation. When the gospel is preached men hear it. When the gospel is lived men see it.