The Great Renovation

And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. (Romans 12:2, NKJV)

Mike and I are currently renovating our townhouse. We are working on adding some color (YAY COLOR!) with new paint, carpet, rugs, plants, and we are doing some deep cleaning as well. Last night we bought special cleaners and a special tool with a scrubber so we can dig down deep and clean the tile and grout. 

The night before last, Mike went head to head with the hard water stains on the glass in our master shower. He got down on his knees and scrubbed the tile. He reached up high and scrubbed the top of the glass. And finally, (God bless his heart) He sat down and scrubbed the shower floor. It was quite a process. (Who knew WATER could set up like CONCRETE?!) 

We were away from home for quite some time and when we returned, we kept seeing large ants (like really large…I am not a fan of bugs) all over our house. We kept wondering, “Where are all these ants coming from?" Well. We (and by we, I mean me) found (Dare I publicly admit this…in writing?!) an ant infestation in our jacuzzi tub! Who does that?! How did I discover this infestation one might ask? 

Well. 

 While I was cleaning our tub (in order to enjoy a very-very-very long salt and oil bath…after not having a bathtub for almost a year. Selah!), I turned on the jets to clean out the jacuzzi tub and…HELLO ANT MONSTER ATTACK!! Thankfully, about 10,000 ants immediately got stuck in the filter but another about 10,000 tried to escape by crawling up the tile on the wall! Who knew ants were so fast?! I grabbed a candle holder, threw the candle out, and used the holder to throw water on the wall washing them down, sending them to their watery grave, HA! Take that ant army!

Needless to say, salt/oil bath mood…O-V-E-R. 

I screamed! I jumped! I wanted Mike! Alas…he was at work. What was I to do?! The only thing I could do…kill ‘em all with my bleach/epsom salt/409 arsenal, while stomping and screaming), turn off the jets, and wait for Mike to come home!

After all, I didn’t want the ants to plug up my filter and burn it up! (Yes, there really was that many ants!) Plus, Mike is much better at these situations than I am. 

(It’s ok. He’s use to it. I once trapped a mouse with a laundry basket and waited for Mike to come home to…shall we say, humanely (yeah thats a nice word) remove the varmint (not a fan of troublesome, wild animals a.k.a. varmints either). So nothing shocks him (Mike) anymore.)

It was quite a crime scene. Dead ants…all over the tub. Floating dead ants. Dead ants on the bottom of the tub. Dead ants still stuck in the filter. And I was suspicious there may have been even more dead ants still “in the system” of my tub. Those places I couldn’t see. I wasn’t motivated to investigate any further. I knew Mike would have the perfect plan.

When Mike got home from work, I showed him the crime scene and told him every detail of my horrific ant attack and I said, “What should I do?” He hugged me, patted my head and said, “You should go sit down and rest while I clean this mess up.” 

And. Then. I heard the angels sing.

Last night, we went shopping for rugs and a coffee table. I found the perfect coffee table for me (delightful squeal)! It is like a trunk, the top has glass and the table has a drawer. In the drawer are sections (ORGANIZATION FIX!), where I can display my ocean finds!

I declare thee, the best coffee table...ever. That is all.

Again. 

And. Then. I heard the angels sing.

While placing our new rug (filled with beautiful colors) on our clean floor underneath our breakfast table, I (all the sudden and quite unexpectedly) noticed how dirty our chair seats were. The difference between the new and the dirty was a little shocking. The seats have been through five years of “breakfasts” and a passel full of kidlets. I’m going to have to reupholster the seats. (Whoop-whoop, more color!)

I stopped and thought for a second. The more new, clean items I added to our home…I saw something dirty that needed to be cleaned. Just when I thought I had cleaned everything that needed to be cleaned, I would see something else that had to be dealt with. Not in an overwhelming way but in a, “Wow, I wasn’t aware of that until now.” way. 

In that moment…the Holy Spirit spoke to my heart and said, 

“This is the process I gently walk my people through.” (Isaiah 43:19)

So here’s what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life-your sleeping, eating, going to work, and walking around life and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. Don’t become so well adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You’ll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you. (Romans 12:1-2, The Message)

God...confirming His Word...for today, for now. 

"changed from the inside out"

And. Then. Genice cried.

An extremely thankful cry.

Most gracious, loving, sweet hearted, precious and perfect Heavenly Father…thank You for loving me so much You gently walk me through every crack and crevice of my heart and lovingly and gently remove everything that does not align with Your Word! I pray for every reader and myself as well, may we joyfully and with great expectation look forward to these changes with You by our side! Our confidence is not in ourselves but all our trust is in You! Thank You for freedom and deliverance! Thank You for prompting us and convicting us by bringing to our attention, the issues we are to address, overcome, and walk in freedom from. Thank You for teaching us bring our thoughts into captivity and to meditate on whatsoever is true, honest, just, pure, lovely, of good report, virtue and praise! Thank You for renewing our inward man day by day through Your life giving Word! Thank You for setting us up for success in every area of our lives, every day of our lives! We shall hide Your Word in our hearts in order not to sin against You! You deserve all the glory, honor, and praise LORD! Thank You for forgiving us for all infractions, both known and unknown, in the name of Jesus!

Please take the time to read the following, out loud. His living, life giving, life changing Word will take root in your life and change you from the inside out!

Proverbs 3:5, 6

Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding.
Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take.

Revelation 3:19

I correct and discipline everyone I love. So be diligent and turn from your indifference.

Philippians 4:8

And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.

2 Corinthians 4:16

That is why we never give up. Though our bodies are dying, our spirits are[a] being renewed every day. 17 For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! 18 So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever.

Psalms 119:1

Joyful are people of integrity, who follow the instructions of the LORD.

Romans 8:31-29

What can we say about all of this? If God is for us, who can be against us? God didn’t spare his own Son but handed him over to death for all of us. So he will also give us everything along with him. Who will accuse those whom God has chosen? God has approved of them. Who will condemn them? Christ has died, and more importantly, he was brought back to life. Christ is in the honored position—the one next to God the Father on the heavenly throne. Christ also intercedes for us. What will separate us from the love Christ has for us? Can trouble, distress, persecution, hunger, nakedness, danger, or violent death separate us from his love? 

Acts 3:19

Now repent of your sins and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped away.

1 Thessalonians 5:18

give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.

Okay

The Spirit itself bears witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God. (Romans 8:16, NLT)

Earlier this year we renovated an apartment. We purchased a new…yes, brand new...bathroom vanity and had it installed and before it was even fully installed, the paint started peeling. I've been needing to sand and repaint it. It's on my list.

This morning, as I looked at the paint (that keeps peeling) I thought back to when we were in the midst of renovations. Thankfully, now we just have a few items here and there to work on. But back in the midst of the renovations, Mikea (my nine year old) walked up to Mike and I and said, "Isn't this such a nice place? We are so blessed and everything is so pretty and new." She didn't mention the bathroom vanity. Her statement threw us into a conversation: when parents are okay, kids are okay. For the most part, Mike and I remained extremely positive only dwelling on the positive aspects of the renovations. Our girls never made a negative comment. Since their parents were okay, they were okay.

I have a good report for you today, Your Heavenly Father is okay…more than okay!

You may be going through something right now that doesn't seem okay, but the truth is…Your Heavenly Father is okay which makes you okay...more than okay! (Romans 8:16)

I once heard Dr. Terry Mize make the following comment, "Truth always trumps true. God's Word is Absolute Truth"

Something may be true right now:

• Difficult marriage
• Negative doctor's report
• Financial problems
• Rebellious child/ren
• Broken heart

But we can take Truth and trump true. 

And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work. (2 Corinthians 9:8, NKJV)

Lord, in the name of Jesus, we know You are able to and that You make all grace about toward us, that we, always have all sufficiency in all things, and in abundance for every good work! Thank You for never lying to us! Thank You for watching over Your Word to perform it! Thank You for blessing us and keeping us! You are good, always good and we love and adore You! We are grateful You take pleasure in the prosperity of Your servants! Thank You for showing Yourself and Your heart to every reader right now in the name of Jesus! 

We love to hear from you, how has God shown you, you are okay?

2 Corinthians 9:8

Numbers 23:19

Jeremiah 1:12

Numbers 6:24

Psalm 35:27

Isaiah 5:20

That UnAwesome Moment When…

For I am about to do something new. See, I have already begun! Do you not see it? I will make a pathway through the wilderness. I will create rivers in the dry wasteland. (Isaiah 43:19, NLT)

Earlier this year, we renovated an apartment that was built in the sixties. When I was a teenager, I always dreamed of moving to a large city, buying an old flat, and renovating it. Since renovating this apartment, I'm good on that dream as I have discovered, old buildings are accompanied by old problems, i.e. plumbing, electrical, etc. And I learned, old problems cannot be covered up by new fixtures…no matter how cute and retro they may be.

During this morning's shower, we inadvertently obtained a water feature…again...in our bathroom when the shower handle broke…again…for the fourth time. About that time, the above scripture was brought to my remembrance, certainly by God and not my flesh as my flesh had other ideas…a lot of other ideas. 

Thank God for teaching us to be led by the Spirt and not the flesh! (Galatians 5:16 & 17) As I meditated on that scripture, "Behold, I make all things new!" (Revelations 21:5) and "I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you" (Ezekiel 36:26) flooded my heart! 

Oh…yes…pun fully intended!

Once again, God's Word came alive as it occurred to me, God knew He would have to do something new, make all things new, and give us a new heart because our "old" would've been accompanied by old problems. God doesn't want us to continuously deal with old leaks!

Once I ran those scriptures through my mind and mouth several times, I heard SpiritFM play, "Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials." (James 1:2)

I had to laugh…laugh out loud, really loud! Thank you www.SpiritFm.org for answering His call and speaking into our lives over the years, always right on time!

Tell us, how do you handle leaks?

Thank You-Thank You-Thank You, most gracious and loving Father, for doing something new in our lives, thank You for making all things new, and thank You for giving us a new heart! Thank You for protecting us from ourselves! Thank You for teaching us to be led by Your precious Holy Spirit instead of falling into the traps of the flesh. Thank You for knowing the end from the beginning and making our path straight! And thank You for making Your Word come alive to us…even during leaks…especially, during leaks. I pray for every reader right now, in the name of Jesus, they will know the breadth, length, height, and depth, of Your amazing unfailing love! And Your Word will come alive to them…especially during leaks. 

Isaiah 46:10

Proverbs 3:6

Ephesians 3:18

Demolition Derby Time!

We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. (2 Corinthians 10:5, NLT)

I have read and read and read that scripture. I have confessed and confessed and confessed that scripture. But this week, that scripture has come alive to me in a new way!

Our store on Oahu, Central Pacific Rebuilders, has an upstairs living quarters. This week, our friend Joseph has been renovating the living quarters area.

It is our Palace O'Da Key Tov!

The building was built in the sixties. I'm extremely positive it has not been touched since that time. God has given me a wonderful vision for this project! Not a vision in the biblical sense, a vision as in how to renovate it.

The first thing Joe had to do was gut the whole upstairs. There was hammering and sawing and banging. It was like a demolition derby, except with men instead cars! At the end of day one, I looked around and I thought, now THIS is what the Lord intended by demolishing arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God!

Seeing the results of the "gutting" made me want to further my study of the word demolish (mahalo Google) and I found:

Verb

• Pull or knock down (a building).
• Comprehensively refute (an argument or its proponent).

Synonyms

• destroy - wreck - ruin - tear down - pull down

This is my new translation for 2 Corinthians 10:5!

We demolish-pull down-knock down-comprehensibly destroy-wreck-ruin-tear down-refute all arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ!

When we are tempted with thoughts of:

• Anxiety
• Hurt
• Frustration
• Confusion
• Condemnation
• Anger
• Offense

We run to Jesus and demolish 'em!
We don't run to our friends &/or Facebook and amplify 'em!

We replace:

• anxiety with "Lord, I cast all anxieties on You, because You care for Me!" (1 Peter 5:7)
• hurt with "I fear not, for You are with me; I am not dismayed, for You are my God! You strengthen me, Yes, You help me! You uphold me with Your righteous right hand." (Isaiah 41:10)
• frustration with "Thank You Jesus for bringing to my remembrance to refuse to grow weary of doing good! Thank You for Your promise I will reap in due season when I refuse to give up!" (Galatians 6:9)
• Confusion with "Father, thank You for Your wonderful Spirit of truth! He guides me into all the truth! (John 16:13)
• Condemnation with "Thank You Jesus there is no place for condemnation in me! You have made me free from the law of sin and death! (Romans 8:1, 2)
• Anger with "Father, You gave me emotions! I handle my emotions in a healthy, godly manner! When I am angry, I refuse to sin! I put my trust in You! (Psalm 4:4-5)
• Offense with "Father, thank You for teaching me to walk in forgiveness which makes me free! Thank You for showing me how to avoid the terrible trap of unforgiveness!" (Mark 11:25)

Friends, it's demolition derby time!

The Tiny Lightsaber

I tell you, you can pray for anything, and if you believe that you've received it, it will be yours. (Matthew 11:24, NLT)

We are currently renovating a rooftop apartment. Last night, we were at Lowes picking out tile, doors, windows, paint, etc.

Our youngest, Gracie, saw a light wand of some sort. A little trinket flash light that looks a lot like a tiny lightsaber. Gracie is a huge Star Wars fan. I saw her face as she inspected it. She turned it on. She turned it off. She turned it over. She turned it around. She inspected every aspect of the trinket.

I don't buy trinkets. She knew not to come to me. I have a rule. We don't buy something every time we go to the store.

But Daddy, Daddy blesses his baby girls! She said, "Poppa, can I please have this light? It's like a tiny light saber!" Daddy is also a Star Wars fan. He "gets" Gracie.

As we were walking out of Lowes, she was skipping across the parking lot (tiny lightsaber in tow) and grabbed my hand. She said, "When I saw the lightsaber, I prayed and asked God for it. I believed I would get it. And now I have it! Thank you Mommy!"

The tiny Lightsaber life lesson:

Pray
Believe
Receive

Key point:

She knew to ask her Father.

Since her father provided her with something as seemingly insignificant as a trinket, how much more does a perfect Father provide what we need! (Luke 11:13)

I tell you, you can pray for anything, and if you believe that you've received it, it will be yours. (Matthew 11:24, NLT) Even tiny light sabers.