In the Dominican Republic there have been a ton of half finished building porjects. Some of them have been grand and gorgeous and some are on the small scale. Some are extra rooms being added to houses or staircases that should lead to a second story and don’t. A bunch of them have trees growing up from the floor and some are gorgeous but never got roofs. Whatever the reason maybe some ran out of money or supplies, maybe the builder got sick and couldn’t work but these empty shells of concrete still stand. They kind of remind me of spiritual things in our lives. Maybe we let the master builder in and got the plans laid and then got overwhelmed. Maybe illness set in right after the walls were built so the floor never got put in. Things got too taxing trying to put on the roof we ran out of energy and motivation to go after our dream.
I realized this month as I was surround by the growth of Hope 4DR that there is a difference in process verses progress. You can have the most skilled books and tools and best intentions but without the right craftsman (Jesus) your building a hollow shell without a foundation. You can also have the builder but lack the resources and energy to accomplish the task. There are many half finished projects in my past. Dreams I let die or was not disciplined enough to go after them. The best thing about construction though is that it is an action word. It doesn’t have a past or future it simply is in the process. God has been showing me these past projects this month. Things that I need to work on or desire to change both in my heart and about my life.
Ministry this month was peaceful. There was a lot of time for spiritual growth and rest. We did a lot of self examination and one thing God really showed me was that I had stopped dreaming. There are things I need to accomplish when the race is over and financial responsibilities. I had been so focused on just getting here that I hadn’t allowed myself to even picture what he could have for me after. My teammates Jazz made a comment about this being the beginnng and it stopped me in my tracks. Faith is active, as a Christian we are constantly going deeper with God. I’m sick of settling for luke warm in my everyday life.
I’m excited to revisit some of my construction sites with the right heart attitude and perspective. The master builder is not done with me yet and I truly believe more then ever that he has something magnificent in store.
