A Time for Renovations!

What a Week! It has been a very looooooong week! Yet, it hasn't been a long week in a bad sense. I've been extremely busy renovating. We gutted out our dinning room, and renewed it from floor to ceiling! What a job, it took us all week, as I had to work most of the week. Now at the beginning of the new week we are basically finished. Just a few nick knacks to fix up.

So, on account of this I haven't had time to write my thoughts this past week. Now, let me share something that I feel is very important.

While we were busy renovating this week the Lord Jesus impressed upon me the importance of renovations not just in a home, but also in the spiritual life of a person. Everyone of us needs to undergo a period of renovations every once in awhile so we can keep out the junk that the devil, this world, and our old carnal nature tries to hide in us.

Webster describes renovation as:

• 1. the act of renewing, a making new after decay, destruction, or deprivation; renewal; as the renovation of the heart by grace.
• I looked up Renovating and it refered me to Renewing: -- 1. Making new again; repairing; re-establishing; repenting; reviving; renovating.
• Romans 12:2

In order to renovate we must first take out the junk, decay, depravity and destruction. We need to lay aside our weights and sins which distract us from walking with Jesus. We need to separate ourselves from things that are worldly, and lead away from God. We need to repent which is a turning away from something, and get baptized, which is a washing away of the dirtiness of this world and sin.

• Hebrews 12:1
• 2 Corinthians 6:16, 17
• Acts 2:38

Next we must rebuild after we take out all those bad things in our lives. For, if we don't put something back in, something other than God will find its way into our hearts and take us over again. Luke 11:24, 25

We need to fill our lives with the Holy Spirit of Jesus Christ, for we are the living temple of the Holy Spirit. We must put on Jesus Christ, and the Whole armor of God. We need to become the image of Christ, so that when people look at us they see Jesus instead. We must fill our selves with the Spirit so much that we portray the fruit of the Spirit.

• Acts 2:38
• 1 Corinthians 6:19
• Romans 13:12-14
• Galatians 3:27
• Ephesians 4:24
• Ephesians 6:11
• Colossians 3:10
• Galatians 5:22, 23
  
• Colossians 3:12-14

Regular renovation will ensure that we stay close to Jesus, and that we are always fresh and alive in the Spirit. We can't afford to become stagnant or stale for then we will open ourselves up to something that we really don't want in.

If we don't renovate our lives we will not be saved from God's wrath to come!
If we do not renovate our lives we will not be able to understand what God's will it!

I want to know what God desires of me!

Yours for Christ,
Pastor Fred

PS. These are not images or our renovations! Just some I took off the Internet for emphasis.