Painting Closets and Transforming Hearts
Jesus is the light that will illuminate the darkest corners of our hearts.
“Behold, I make all things new.” – Revelation 21:5, RSV-CE
My house has been a construction zone lately. Almost a year ago, my husband and I closed on our new-to-us home: a two-level house, built in 1978, that had only had one owner for 47 years. The house “spoke” to us from the moment we walked in, and there were many projects we envisioned when we bought this house.
In this last year, what started as a bathroom remodel, slowly evolved and changed into multiple home projects (some being the result of a major leak, see my post: Hawaii, Home Emergencies, and God’s Faithfulness for more of THAT story!). Life has been full of early mornings, displaced furniture, picking out paint colors, flooring, windows, and lots and lots (did I mention, lots?) of construction dust!
Recently, my husband and I tackled our next project: painting our master bedroom and closet. While some do not enjoy it, I on the other hand truly enjoy painting. It is hard work, but is beautiful watching an old, scuffed up wall become new again. Something as simple as a fresh paint color can completely transform a room. With the windows open and the sun shining, we worked on painting the old white walls with a new, warm tan color.
When it came time to paint our walk-in closet, I really did not realize how hard it would be. I thought, surely this is a smaller space than the whole room, it won’t be too bad.
I was wrong.
8 hours later, I was out of energy, covered in paint, sweating, and staring at my freshly painted closet.
And in the process, I learned a few things.
First and foremost, closets are not easy to paint! There are so many nooks and crannies, and areas that probably don’t need to be painted, but for the sake of uniformity, get painted anyway. You need a small brush, a big brush, a roller, the kitchen sink…. lots of tools needed!
Second, because of the lighting, I had to use a flashlight and extra lamp, in addition to the overhead light, to make sure I could actually see what I was doing. Just when I thought I had gotten a surface fully painted, when I shined a light on it, there was a big white spot that I missed.
Third, painting a closet is like examining the interior of one’s heart.
We just celebrated Easter this past Sunday (yay!), and came out of a 40 day journey in the desert. During Lent, it is a time to examine our hearts and identify what needs to be made new. In transforming and renewing our hearts, we have to take a light to the darkest corners to illuminate the areas that need Jesus.
Jesus is that light that will illuminate the darkest corners of our hearts.
Like painting a closet with fresh new paint, Easter is a beautiful season to let the love of Jesus into the dusty, cobwebbed corners of our hearts. And it’s okay if those corners look a little scuffed up. Jesus will illuminate them with His soft, gentle light, and help us be made anew.
We just have to invite Him in.
In Christ,