Yesterday, I was walking upstairs and my little bench caught my attention. It is decorated for the Fall season and just noticing it made me smile, You see, I've been ill recently, so seeing it decorated for Fall made me feel just a bit better!
This bench has been through a lot! I bought it a few years ago from a vintage store. It was already old and worn, with paint flaking off all over the place. I decided to sit it outside for awhile, on my back deck; it was blue so it looked good with my deck furniture. It was repurposed for awhile as I sat small plants of colorful flowers on it. Paint could flake off all it wanted while it was holding pots of flowers and sitting on my deck. But being outside like that, in the weather, made it look even worse and I knew it wouldn't last long in the elements. So I decided to bring it inside.
I sat it in my foyer, but I never liked the way it looked there. My walls were gray and this bench was a vivid blue, at least the parts that still had paint on it. I decided to paint over the blue with an antique white, I loved the way it turned out, so since then it has sat in my front foyer, right by my front door, and I decorate it with different seasonal decor.
It's become such a "thing" with me - it's usually the very first thing I decorate when it's time to change out my seasonal decor. I have so much fun changing it up all the time, sometimes spending hours deciding how to decorate it, adding candles, tee towels and knick-knacks. When I'm finally satisfied, it brings such a sense of contentment.
My bench is the first thing that people see when they come in my house, It sits there and greets them, and I hope it makes them feel welcome. I hope they feel, "This is a comfortable, safe place." It may be old but it still has so much purpose and I hope to have my little bench for many years to come.
Which brings me back to yesterday and my bench catching my attention! As I looked at the bench, a thought came to mind. My bench reminds me of myself!
I was outside of God's presence for many years. I lived in and for the world and it was rough on me. I became hardened and worn around the edges. I could have been thrown out! But God kept whispering to me, wanting to make me new, wanting me to fulfil my purpose. And one day I said, Yes, Lord! I asked God to forgive me and to use me in a glorious, eternal purpose.
"Come now, let's settle this," says the Lord. "Though your sins are like scarlet, I will make them as white as snow. Though they are red like crimson, I will make them as white as wool." Isaiah 1:18(NLT)
He cleaned me up and made me a new creation - He didn't just slap a coat of paint on me, He changed me inside and out! He lit a passion in me for studying the bible and being with like-minded ladies. Now, I have days when I live fully for His purpose, and on those days, it's like I'm that little bench, shining for God, with a new coating of faith and love. But there are also days when I don't live like I should, days when I fail. On those days, I'm worn a bit around the edges and you can tell I've been out in the weather too long. But He doesn't throw me out!
God still loves me on those "worn" days; He tells me I am forgiven and so I begin again. He tells me to continue shining for Him and so I try again. And again! And again! He never loses His patience with me and His love for me seems to only grow larger and larger.
Some day, I will have to get rid of my little bench. But one thing I know beyond a shadow of a doubt - God will never get rid of me. He will always love me, He will always tell me to try again, and He showers me with blessings through it all! He has a place and a purpose for me, and someday He will bring me home.
Maybe your life is like that little bench - maybe you've been worn down by the world, by broken promises, by always wondering about your purpose. I'd love to talk to you about my God, who can wash you as white as snow and give you a purpose you could never have dreamed. That's my prayer for you today!
And by the way, come by and see me sometime. I will show you my bench.
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