cleaning

Restore and Repeat, until Matthew 24 Happens

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Well, I won’t really know until it rains, but I restored a little sanity to my situation in the laundry room. The sag saga situation continued for many years, like the sagging of the ceiling board with the heavy water soaked in (this year after last year’s drought). And the siding separated and the foam fizzled and me, well I pushed off the problem but now it became paramount before we potentially could get paralyzed by plummeting by the power panel. Now that would have been bigger problems! “The sky is falling” is nothing compared to worse. Sounds funny but true.

So I found the people who took on the job with unknowns after 3 repair people balked, one place relentlessly pursued with their pricey price. And these folks – well it was a sign from God, that I perceived at least – a perhaps at least – this phone number placement in peculiar timing, on a poster board by a parking lot, peculiar and pertinent when my friend mentioned she needed painting. I took the photo, she placed the phone call and the people painted. The participation of placement allowed me to tap into them as a possibility of personal property repair folks too, for my sagging laundry room ceiling and broken AC removal, and replacing siding (it matched so well). Yes, I finally took the plunge and paid for the patching. I hope the rain rolls instead of seeps. I hope the siding slides the sheets of soaking snow and sprinkles. I hope it is fixed, but at least it is new and not sagging, and we maybe we start again. Won’t know until it rains and no, I am not dragging a hose up there to find out…

Rain, Restore and Repeat.

That’s life.  You don’t know how water seeps in everywhere, let alone when it is going to rain or be a drought, and this is the truth about life too. You don’t know the future damage or bliss, but you can be prepared to tackle that then. It is a good time to “push off” the worry. We don’t know what’s going to go bad around the corner, so don’t worry about it now and just deal with it then. So just cover yourself now and keep moving… Rain restore and repeat. If you did it once, you can do it again. And that goes for repairs, for packing and unpacking (keep praying for my friend who moved, please), for cleaning (and yes I have lots of cleaning now from construction dust), for life…  Restore and Repeat. Rolling with it all the way…

My friend completed her move across the country but not the unpacking – she is awaiting more things to fall into place but for now she has a place and a mission with her grandkids. I took the opportunity to mark up the month of June writings with green highlights for each devotion that pertained to her and her moving – it was a process for sure but even though new things popped up, the old ones have moved on – and each day is fresh with the Lord’s mercies new each morning. The writings of June show that life moved forward but God was there each step of the way. And now, I know she is in a new place with new rest and new mission. She can do the restore and repeat situation again if she has to – she can and we all can. Just look at the Lord’s help – know them previously and know He will be there every day moving forward, every moving box, every rain drop, every tear drop. “Put one foot in front of the other”.  The Lord knows not just rain, restore and repeat – the Lord KNOWS REIGN – and He will be there – in being sovereign, reigning, restoring and repeating.

Some day “the earth will dissolve as snow” – well not really – the scripture doesn’t say that song lyric – scripture says “the earth will pass away” – “disappear” – the “sky is falling” is not true – the earth will roll away but we won’t be on it then – and so honestly can we worry about that now? NO. Just get on the Jesus Train and keep chugging along. Just know that the Lord will REMAIN and His Word endures for ever.  So in the meantime, just restore and repeat. and “get up and do it again” until Matthew 24’s prophesy by Jesus goes down. Not the sky but the save.

Restore and Repeat.

Really.

Amen

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Matthew 24 NKJV

Jesus Predicts the Destruction of the Temple
Then Jesus went out and departed from the temple, and His disciples came up to show Him the buildings of the temple. And Jesus said to them, “Do you not see all these things? Assuredly, I say to you, not one stone shall be left here upon another, that shall not be thrown down.”

The Signs of the Times and the End of the Age
Now as He sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?”

And Jesus answered and said to them: “Take heed that no one deceives you. For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many. And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of sorrows.

“Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name’s sake. And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another. Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold. But he who endures to the end shall be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.

The Great Tribulation
“Therefore when you see the ‘abomination of desolation,’ spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place” (whoever reads, let him understand), “then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. Let him who is on the housetop not go down to take anything out of his house. And let him who is in the field not go back to get his clothes. But woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days! And pray that your flight may not be in winter or on the Sabbath. For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be. And unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved; but for the elect’s sake those days will be shortened.

“Then if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or ‘There!’ do not believe it. For false christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. See, I have told you beforehand.

“Therefore if they say to you, ‘Look, He is in the desert!’ do not go out; or ‘Look, He is in the inner rooms!’ do not believe it. For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes to the west, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. For wherever the carcass is, there the eagles will be gathered together.

The Coming of the Son of Man
“Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And He will send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.

The Parable of the Fig Tree
“Now learn this parable from the fig tree: When its branch has already become tender and puts forth leaves, you know that summer is near. So you also, when you see all these things, know that it is near—at the doors! Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all these things take place. Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away.

No One Knows the Day or Hour
“But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only. But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. Then two men will be in the field: one will be taken and the other left. Two women will be grinding at the mill: one will be taken and the other left. Watch therefore, for you do not know what hour your Lord is coming. But know this, that if the master of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched and not allowed his house to be broken into. Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.

The Faithful Servant and the Evil Servant
“Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his master made ruler over his household, to give them food in due season? Blessed is that servant whom his master, when he comes, will find so doing. Assuredly, I say to you that he will make him ruler over all his goods. But if that evil servant says in his heart, ‘My master is delaying his coming,’ and begins to beat his fellow servants, and to eat and drink with the drunkards, the master of that servant will come on a day when he is not looking for him and at an hour that he is not aware of, and will cut him in two and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites. There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Not Rolling Over in One’s Grace (nor Grave)

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I thought many thoughts sorting antiques – mine my family’s and friends – family heirlooms yes and maybe – many thoughts including “what would I think” if I were watching someone look and touch or not value or donate and even toss my stuff. Would I care then, in Heaven, like I would now, if they didn’t match the usefulness to the stuff?

It is that saying: “So and so would be rolling over in their grave”… Really, we understand that concept, that they wouldn’t or don’t like what you are doing and it twists them when already dead… like redoing a musical piece of Beethoven would upset him.  But really, then again, maybe not. Maybe worldliness washes away with death. 

NOT rolling over – For if our deaths are LIFE AGAIN, life at rest AND blessedly LIFE WITH JESUS, then how would we NOT forgive earthly faux-paux’s which are nothing more than clearly clearing up what you don’t need. (And probably didn’t need half of it alive either – we are all like this, me too)…

Jesus said “you can’t take it with you”, especially because we DON’T NEED IT. I mean wouldn’t you react with JOY that someone might enjoy your stuff rather than it carry dust?

And for us to get upset WHILE WE ARE DEAD seems a waste of time. We will then be the dust then anyway (and not immediately the dust on the stuff left behind, unless you have detailed that for the crematorium and paid extra for dust distribution. LOL

 (I digress… )

Surely, if we were seeing the FACE OF JESUS right now, in death, in restful death, of Him holding us in His arms, would we care who is holding, *or not holding*, our earthly stuff? Would we cause drama for earthly things? Would we turn from JESUS’S FACE to look at a Mr Peanut coin bank from 1970’s plastic palooza? NO!

NO! 

(And maybe the thrift shops with our donations can reap the cash to help others)

Who’s holding our legacy too? Are we not broken people already marveling at other’s brokenness right now – but yet now, TRADE THAT THOUGHT for the HEALING that HEAVEN brings – and the HEALER Whom made/makes Heaven Harmonious. 

Jesus, yes, Jesus loves us both in forgetting and in remembering.  Surely with our loved ones and with their stuff, we can LOVE and be fair and be respectful AND NOT JUDGE. Jesus is Whom holds us from NOT rolling over in our graves – as we are held instead in His Graces. We are held forgivingly in His Love. No need to turn away from that!

So don’t remember the stuff over the person. Remember the love too. Remember the Lord in all, He gave His LIFE for Loves sake. 

Don’t turn to look anywhere but at the LOVE. 

Amen 

Proverbs 23:4-5

Do not wear yourself out to get rich; do not trust your own cleverness. Cast but a glance at riches, and they are gone, for they will surely sprout wings and fly off to the sky like an eagle.

Psalm 48

Hear this, all you peoples; listen, all who live in this world, both low and high, rich and poor alike: My mouth will speak words of wisdom; the meditation of my heart will give you understanding. I will turn my ear to a proverb; with the harp I will expound my riddle:

Why should I fear when evil days come, when wicked deceivers surround me – those who trust in their wealth and boast of their great riches? No one can redeem the life of another or give to God a ransom for them – the ransom for a life is costly, no payment is ever enough – so that they should live on forever and not see decay.

For all can see that the wise die, that the foolish and the senseless also perish, leaving their wealth to others. Their tombs will remain their houses forever, their dwellings for endless generations, though they had named lands after themselves.

People, despite their wealth, do not endure; they are like the beasts that perish.

This is the fate of those who trust in themselves, and of their followers, who approve their sayings. They are like sheep and are destined to die; death will be their shepherd (but the upright will prevail over them in the morning). Their forms will decay in the grave, far from their princely mansions.

But God will redeem me from the realm of the dead; he will surely take me to himself.

Do not be overawed when others grow rich, when the splendor of their houses increases; for they will take nothing with them when they die, their splendor will not descend with them. Though while they live they count themselves blessed – and people praise you when you prosper – they will join those who have gone before them, who will never again see the light of life.

People who have wealth but lack understanding are like the beasts that perish.

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Ecclesiastes 5:10-12

Whoever loves money never has enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with their income. This too is meaningless. As goods increase, so do those who consume them. And what benefit are they to the owners except to feast their eyes on them?

The sleep of a laborer is sweet, whether they eat little or much,

but as for the rich, their abundance permits them no sleep.

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1 Timothy 6:7-21 – a letter

For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that. Those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.

Final Charge to Timothy

But you, man of God, flee from all this, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness. Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called when you made your good confession in the presence of many witnesses. In the sight of God, who gives life to everything, and of Christ Jesus, who while testifying before Pontius Pilate made the good confession, I charge you to keep this command without spot or blame until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ, which God will bring about in his own time—God, the blessed and only Ruler, the King of kings and Lord of lords, who alone is immortal and who lives in unapproachable light, whom no one has seen or can see. To him be honor and might forever. Amen.

Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life.

Timothy, guard what has been entrusted to your care. Turn away from godless chatter and the opposing ideas of what is falsely called knowledge, which some have professed and in so doing have departed from the faith.

Grace be with you all.