I’m remodeling my kitchen. Well, it would be more accurate to say that I’m having my kitchen remodeled, meaning someone else is doing the heavy lifting. I am, however, doing plenty of work myself in the midst of the work being done. My task list includes:
Stuff Assessment - Do I really need to keep all the stuff that I just moved out of the kitchen and family room? I mean, when is the last time I actually used the Tupperware orange rind scorer, and why am I hanging onto that Coca Cola bottle with the Chinese writing? It is kinda cool though.
Dust Duty - Workmen come, do their work, and create a lot of dust in the process. Workmen leave at the end of the day, but the dust remains. I do my best to keep other rooms closed off while the crew is here, but the dust goes pretty much everywhere in the house. So when the last worker heads out, my shift begins. I sweep up a bit, vacuum, and otherwise trying to keep the chaos corralled as much as possible because I don’t leave at the end of the day.
Stress Management - I’m not into stress eating yet, but there are two bags of potato chips on standby. On a more healthful note, my friends and family have given me dining privileges in their homes or the pleasure of their company out somewhere. What a blessing it is to break bread in calmer, cleaner surroundings.
Comptroller - A comptroller is the person who keeps tabs on income and expenditures for a business. I’ve got a great handle on the outgo part of this remodel, let me tell you. This American is doing her part to stimulate the local economy. It’s the income I’m a little concerned about. I may have to give serious thought to the “Kitchen Remodel Tour.”
Despite all the dust, aggravation and expense that goes along with a house remodeling project, I truly love it. I don’t enjoy living in the midst of it so much, but I love watching the transformation as vision becomes reality. I find it very soul-satisfying to see the old and worn become new and beautiful again. Surely my personal sense of enjoyment must be a small reflection of the nature of God the Creator within me, His created one. The Lord Jesus was a builder by trade while He walked among us, you know. I imagine He enjoys a good remodeling project, especially one that makes a worn and sin-weary life new again through the miracle of the new birth. And then there’s those ongoing sanctification “updates” the Holy Spirit oversees in the lives of believers. We are His workmanship in more ways than one (see Ephesians 2:10).
Proverbs 14:4 says, “Where no oxen are, the manger is clean, but much revenue comes by the strength of the ox.” Where there’s a good work going on, you can count on some dust being raised. After all, dust flies when you’re having fun.
