With a heavy and thankful heart, I took a final, sweeping glance around the place my family and I had called home for the last eleven years. Then I locked the door and drove away.
As I did, memories flooded through me. I thought of bringing my two youngest daughters home from the hospital as newborns. And then, there were all the Christmas, birthday, and Thanksgiving dinners with friends and family. Another was the treasure map I made to look old and “hid” in the attic where my son could find it. Along with that came the cloth bag of quarters he dug up in the backyard. So. Many. Memories.
But at the same time, it wasn’t just the good memories but also the hard ones. The never-ending renovation projects, the sicknesses, arguments, and news of family and friends getting sick (or passing away). Additionally, there were the painful ones, like the nail I shot through my finger, coupled with the toothpick broken off in my foot.
All of this resulted from my second time taking a “last look around” at our home. We’d made it into precisely what we wanted before moving on. Both times, one word came to mind. Sanctification.
Sanctification
With this in mind, I thought of our new house. It was sold to us as-is (needs for repairs already on the list). We’ll make it into what we want, perhaps even better. Similarly, God takes us (with all our damage and hurt) and turns us into who He wants us to be. The work of His Holy Spirit undeniably does it. This process is called sanctification.
Without a doubt, all of my house memories represent personal and spiritual growth in the lives of my family. They are the results of lessons learned, risks taken, failures experienced, and successes achieved. My prayer for myself (and you) is that one day, we’ll take a sweeping and final glance back at the life God gave us. And with heavy and thankful hearts, we’ll remember all the good, challenging, and painful times. Along with that, we’ll thank God for making us into exactly who and what He wanted us to be. Then, we’ll breathe our last breath and go to our eternal home — into His glory. And we’ll never “move on” again.
Moved (again),
Posted in A Word from the Pastor