Talk about your fixer-uppers!

Since we moved to our little Southern hamlet seventeen years ago, we've been thinking how wonderful it would be to fix up one of the old Victorian houses on a certain historic street, and make it our home.  Actually, it's been a dream for longer than that.  Before we had children, we lived in an old Victorian (converted into two 3-story townhomes) in downtown Denver.  But when we found out we were expecting, we moved to a suburban neighborhood, and filed our remodeling dreams under "Someday". 

 Well, Someday arrived, eventually.  But, it's not exactly as we imagined...  I had visions of a little painting, some new curtains and voila! Home Sweet Home.  Ummm.... not so much. Though this house has excellent "bones", and lots of endearing qualities, it also had lots of ugly PINK paint. Even the crown moulding was PINK.  And rooms and rooms full of seriously ugly wallpaper. The bathroom is purple and the tub looks like something out of The Little Mermaid, with shell-shaped seating and hardware. Oivay! And the kitchen was home to not one, not two, but three kinds of rooster-themed wallpaper. And the stencils! Little roosters just roosting all over the place...ugh!  Don't even get me started on the sinking deck or the floral nightmare in the foyer.... Updating and renovating was work.  Serious work.  But it was worth it. 

 All of this talk of scraping and sanding and wallpaper stripping has me thinking about the 'renovation' God has done in my life.  Twenty-five years ago March 5th, I invited Him into my life. And the transformation happened just as it's written in 2 Corinthians 5:17:  old things passed away. All things became new.  I marvel that Jesus looked at me- and you- then at the pain and shame of the Cross, and thought 'they're worth it'.  I am eternally grateful. Bet you are, too. 

Today's verse: Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.

Prayer for Today:  Dear Jesus, thank you for your sacrifice for me.  Thank you for looking across time, seeing my broken life, and paying the terrible price of a cruel cross for me.  Better is one day in Your courts than thousands elsewhere!  In Your name, Amen. 

Here's a quick peek at a tiny part of the remodel: the formerly pink and vinyl dining room. After removing a room full of white vinyl with flocked pink tulips, my husband created this little architectural feature with shoe-moulding. Then we primed the whole room (on scaffolding, because the ceilings are nearly 15 feet) and painted them... not pink.  :o)