Rot Repair

This morning I didn't plan on starting my blog in this manner, but this is where I am.  I want  to tell you about my son and a contractor looking at my garage and deciding how much rot was in the siding and the best way to take care of the problem.  In our wet weather, wood tends to deteriorate quite easily once it gets wet.  That was especially true of my garage siding.  It acts as a wick once the water has access to it.  We would have to make sure all damp places were replaced.  That meant taking out some fairly good sized sections to ensure the rot wouldn't spread like cancer.  It made perfect sense to me and had to be done.  I could also see $$$ signs going around and around.  The funny part is my kids were taking care of the cost. But, it was still going to cost somebody a hunk of money.

Then, like God always does, he turned my thoughts from earthly things to spiritual things. Thoughts of rotten wood changed into thoughts of rotten attitudes and other sinful behaviors like resentments, etc.  They all have a tendency to spread and affect all different area of our lives. For example, I was quite upset with a situation involving my husband soon after he went to the county jail.  It had nothing to do with his actions.  It had to do with the action of a group we considered friends. As a result I started talking negatively about them and questioning their faith.  In my eyes, their walk and their talk didn't match up at all. I intentionally avoided them when I spotted them in stores or other public places.  I let myself become very judgmental, condescending, and self righteous.  My area of spiritual rot was slowly spreading.  It needed to be removed, although I wasn't aware of it at the time.

The awareness came during a sermon one Sunday morning.  Pastor was preaching from Mark 11:25 "And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive him, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins." I knew then and there I had to forgive them, but more importantly, I had to ask forgiveness for the words I had spoken. Although, when spoken, they were the truth as I knew it, they were neither grace giving nor edifying. They were also not coming from a pure heart.  They were words of resentment. I knew I needed to ask their forgiveness, but it was going to cost me something, my pride.

So I went, explained the reason for my visit, asked forgiveness, and received it in return. They listened to and heard my heart, and in return I listened to and heard theirs. I soon discovered that my perception of what happened was my perception only, not their intent or reason.  We prayed together and parted with new understanding and renewed friendship.

There was still one more thing I had to do.  That was ask God's forgiveness and repair work.  He was, and is, the master carpenter, the one who removes all the rot that seeks to destroy. He doesn't just put up a patch and make it look like new.  He restores completely, but at great cost.

As I stood by my son and watched the cost mount as wood, nails, and siding were added to the materials list, I saw them morph into something all together different--not literally, but in my mind's eye.  The wood, nail and siding became a cross and $$$ signs became the life blood of the Carpenter himself.  The cost of fixing my rotting garage would be nothing compared to the what it had cost God to repair my rotting heart.