He Makes All Things New
“Behold, I make all things new.” Rev 21:5 NKJV
We associate this verse with the first step we have taken toward Jesus, that life-changing step of receiving Him as our Redeemer, our Savior.
But there is an ongoing reality that continues to take place with every pursuant step that we take toward the Lord and His Kingdom.
A PERSONAL STORY
For the past month or more, I have been living in a construction zone.
I had the great idea that a new kitchen would update our home, which is a townhouse of about 1200 square feet. It is a lovely place with a wonderful view of Puget Sound. The square footage will give you an idea of what the size of the kitchen might be. It is small, compact, and wonderfully bright with lots of light. The kitchen is the heart of the home, no matter the size. It makes home feel like home!
So, my wonderful idea of renewal moved into becoming a process. I showed pictures to the contractor. No problem, he said. We will begin soon. Soon was a little longer than I had expected, but I was so filled with excitement and expectation that the wait was well worth it. The very thought of “new” captured my heart.
We came home from 5 1/2 weeks in Europe and Israel to see cardboard covering all of the floors. Then I walked into what had been a kitchen to see walls that had been stripped down to the drywall and blue taping. Excitement welled up within me. The vision is not far off now, I thought to myself.
THE PROCESS
Process is interesting. You have to learn new life patterns. Nothing is where it was before the teardown began.
The dining room was now filled with “stuff from the kitchen.” I am not a saver by nature. So, the “stuff” seemed necessary in its old place. But, as I looked at it strewn around, I thought, hmm, maybe the “stuff” isn’t as useful or as needful as I had thought. I was seeing it in a new light. I had thought I’d trimmed down three years ago when we moved into our new residence.
It’s funny how things stick to you as you journey through life. They become the pattern by which you think, act and react. It is as automatic as reaching for plates in the normal place. Silverware is here, sharp knives are there, glassware is in that cupboard. You know the drill, don’t you? We become atomized in many of our life patterns.
LIFE IN THE SPIRIT
In our walk with Jesus, we have learned that it’s about learning to yield to the Holy Spirit, who has come to make all things new in our hearts, our belief system, and our life patterns.
We let go of this and that…here and there. But, then the manager of the reconstruction comes in to offer help and expertise. And a much different process begins…yes, down to the drywall and blue taping! Are you smiling? Are you crying? Are you wondering how I reacted to the process? As you might guess, I reacted in all of the same ways. You see, I am a neatnik. I like everything orderly and in its place. I dust, keep up with cleaning, and I even enjoy doing it. It is peaceful to me, a part of my natural man. I was raised like this and was told, “This is how you do it.”
But, oh my goodness, when the reconstruction began, I had to steel myself against the natural disorder of the process. Don’t look at the dust. Don’t fight against the dining room table being filled with the “stuff” you thought was so necessary. Don’t fight against continually looking for your ordinary needs in the old places because everything is in the process of becoming new.
OTHER THINGS
Along with the reconstruction process, something went amiss with my knee. So, now every move had to be thought through so as to not waste a step. Oh, glory! I don’t even know how to calculate this new situation. Nothing is as it was. My orderly life had been disrupted, but we are moving towards something new. It will be beautiful when it is finished. It is quite an upgrade.
I have to smile as I think about the day I came home to find that my bright spot, the kitchen window that allowed so much light into this whole space, had been boarded up. Of course, it was purposeful. A new window with a much better grade of glass was being installed. But, for a short while, my vision, my light seemed was disrupted. Now, not only was nothing in its usual place, my light had been dimmed.
Of course, you know where I am going with all of this. What a current lesson it has been in my walk with The Lord. It can be an alarming thing when nothing seems to be as it once was. All of your spiritual routines don’t have the same life in them as they once did. Your usual reading patterns no longer have the same life. Your prayer life seems dull. Your vision seems limited. But, alas, He is making all things new…and it doesn’t come without distortion to the old.
THE MOLDING OF A PEOPLE GROUP
We are living in new times, different times. He is molding a people group that has been made new in the midst of the turmoil and the mess of life and times all around us.
It isn’t a time to wonder if it was a good idea to start a reconstruction process. You are already well on your way. Newness is coming. It isn’t as dark as you think. Light, new light, is coming. He makes all things beautiful in His time and it is the right time to be made new and to be formed into the Kingly, priestly intercessors God knows us to be.*
Aglow is not the same ministry it was formed to be in the late 1960’s, nor the 1980’s, nor the year 2000. Today, as I was talking to God, I found myself saying, “I yield. I yield to the process, the mess, the leg that is hurting….because You are in it all. You reign over all. Your creative hand is moving across this situation and across the world to form something wonderfully new. I wanted the new before I fully understood all that was involved in the process. And, I want the new now…IN THE MIDST OF THE PROCESS.
It is the RIGHT TIME for the Holy Spirit to come into our lives, our routines, our orderliness and begin to make all things new. We want the new. We have asked to be made new. And He has come to fulfill the desire He planted in our hearts for the new.
Enjoy the process.
*For more on Kingly, priestly intercessors see Dutch sheets message by clicking on this link https://www.aglow.org/images/_leaderDev/2017-Conference-SatPM-Dutch-Sheets-11-3.pdf