Being Rebuilt

I used to pass this house every day on my way to work over Christmas break. The top porch was caving, the windows were boarded up, the whitewash was peeling, and it echoed with what once had been.

Even though I knew it was an area of town that was being turned from old farmhouses to new subdivisions, I wished that it could have been renovated and returned to its past, homey glory.

When we feel like this house, unwanted, abandoned, broken, God is working on us. He is the architect that has all the master plans. As He strips us of the broken parts, like someone gutting an old house, we must remember, He has plans for us. Plans we don't understand. He doesn't leave us in disrepair, but takes us through the process of being rebuilt. Even through the pain and ache of it.

Zephaniah 3:17 "The LORD your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing."

God sings over us with joy. How beautiful and encouraging is that? The trials in our lives are refining fires, yes, and we can trust Him because He not only knows His plans, but He loves us with incredible power. He loved us to send His Son, Jesus, to die to pay the penalty of my sin and break its power. He will love me still. 

So my prayer is this: 
God, give me faith as you rebuild me. Remind me of your singing. Remind me that you rejoice in me. Remind me that you are the architect and I am the house. Let me not forget that. Amen.