Amos 9:14 NLT
'I will bring my exiled people of Israel back from distant lands, and they will rebuild their ruined cities and live in them again. They will plant vineyards and gardens; they will eat their crops and drink their wine.'
The challenge in all restoration is deciding what that restoration will look like. Jayne and I restored an old Victorian house in Portsmouth. First, we needed to decide on the character of that restoration. We chose to return the house to its Victorian heritage, while ensuring it fulfilled the criteria for contemporary living. We chose to restore fireplaces, skirting boards, architraving and reveal the original tiled floor. So, a process started which would last some years.
The same is true in God’s restoration project. What appears broken can be renewed. Past neglect and mistreatment can be left to the past and replaced with something that is beautiful and fit both for purpose and for today. However, the process takes time, effort and imagination, for no restoration is instant and for a time, things can look a lot worse.
During the work, Jayne had some eye surgery. I brought her back to a house full of dust and with no electricity. In the middle of the night she freaked out thinking she had gone blind. There were no lights and her eyelids had stuck together following surgery. As she freed them and opened her eyes, she remembered that we were without electricity and camping for a while in what was yet to become our wonderful house.
As we offer ourselves to God for restoration, there will be times when nothing appears to work and we cry out in surprise, even terror, because the life we anticipated is not the life we appear to be living. Yet, God’s promise is to make all things new (Revelation 21:5); with our cooperation, God is recreating us one degree at a time.
QUESTION: Do you look for instant solutions to presenting problems?
PRAYER: May I have fresh strength and patience with you and myself as we work together on my restoration.

Released on 10 Mar 2020