For many years I have passed the same broken down, almost decrepit home. The grass each summer was almost always overgrown. This in itself is unusual because it’s such a residential area on a main street in my neighborhood. You can tell that no one has lived there for many years and the place was not being kept up.
Recently, a change started happening. The first visual change to me, was they paved the front yard where the overgrown grass would normally be at this time of year. Then over the course of the last month or so, there have been lots of changes: a beautiful new door, the old siding has been completely removed and replaced with a concrete and stronger exterior, the windows have been replaced, and were pulled open where I can see the beautiful vertical blinds hanging inside what I’m guessing is the living room. Remember I told you this house was literally falling down not so long ago? It was in shambles. When I passed by and saw all the changes that had occurred, it made me think of a conversation I’d had with my friend earlier that day regarding the power of words.
Words are so powerful. Words have the power to do major harm, and words can help to heal. I liken it to the home I previously mentioned, I feel like it sat there for years with no one ever seeing it’s potential. I feel like all who saw it exclaimed that it was never good enough. ‘It’s too old…. It’s too broken down.. It’s this.. It’s that…’ But one day, someone stopped by and finally saw the potential in that old house. Hmmm., ‘I can do a few things here and there and get this home fully remodeled.’ I bet this purchaser got it at a serious discount because no one else could see the value that had built up over those years it sat dormant. It’s already in a great neighborhood.
So too in our lives, sometimes we sit dormant, and may even start falling a part. We believe that no one sees our true worth or potential. So, instead of living up to our highest potential, we start feeling despondent and then it becomes a cycle where we tell ourselves we are not good enough. Until one day… someone comes in and starts telling us how much potential they see. They pave the over grown grass. They change the doors.. And right away, things start looking differently. Then slowly, and with lots of care, they make little changes, that make us feel like entirely new beings.
Lord, help us that sometimes we might feel broken down and falling apart but you see our true worth. Help us to realize that our value is in you. Help us to take the time to rebuild our inner and outer self after we have gone through years of sitting dormant, waiting for you to speak life and love in our hearts, knowing that you made us and you know our value because we are fearfully and wonderfully made.