Three Houses

Three Houses:

1) This house is a 2 story, finished basement, 2 car garage, back yard, deck. In a round about sense, it seems to be one of the most perfect houses that you could find. Good exterior, new siding, new roof, good driveway. It has everything that you could ask for from the outside looking in. It has a great yard, good grass, nice tress and landscaping. It is just so tempting from the outside looking in. It looks as though it could be perfect. However you walk one step into the house and you realize that the inside has holes in the walls, the carpet is stained, the hard wood floors are warping, there are cracks in the wall, the foundation is not solid. All of a sudden there is a worry and hesitancy to the house. But it looks so good from the outside?

2) This one is a little smaller, still 2 bedroom, smaller yard, smaller deck, not as awesome outside. So you wouldn’t naturally draw to this house because of the exterior, but then you walk inside to find brand new walls, brand new hard wood floors, new paint, new carpet in the bedrooms, new fixtures, new appliances. Everything on the inside is screaming “BUY ME!!” You fall in love with the house even though the exterior is a little beat up and needs work, but the interior is clean, new, valuable. There is one problem though, the hard part is going to be selling other people because the exterior is so beat up and well, not eye appealing.

3) The last house is the one. It has a great exterior: a nice deck, nice yard, nice siding, nice color, nice driveway. 2 bedrooms, somewhat new kitchen, kitchen is in great shape, bedrooms are newly carpeted, the roof is new, the shingles are obviously new with the new roof, the 2 car garage. It is it. It is wonderful. It is the one that looks good from the outside and looks just as good on the inside. It has a good track record and a good interior. It is one that is time tested and ready to move into the future with a new family inside. It is one that will bring lasting memories and many happy moments. It is also the house that is going to have hard times but will be able to last because of the good foundation and love that went into building the house.

Matthew 13:1-23

What house would you go for?

I have been thinking about this for a little while now as Amanda and I begin the search for a house. We are looking at all sorts of houses: houses, townhomes, condo’s. It is search that seems to bring out a lof feelings and thoughts.

One of the houses that we went and looked at, was a perfect example of what I have been thinking. It was a perfect house. 3 bedrooms, 1 and a half bath, 2 car garage, front yard, back yard, sun room, new siding, white picket fence. It was what Amanda called “a dream house.” When we went to look at it, we walked into nothing that we thought we would. The foundation of the house was literally falling in on itself. I got dizzy walking in the house. At one point, I stood in the kitchen and started to fall over because the ground wasn’t flat.

But isn’t this how our lives look sometimes?

1) We seem to be doing great. We seem to be getting along just fine but when we take a little deeper look into our lives, we are broken bruised and falling apart. Our foundation is falling apart from the inside out and we are not really sure where to go. We have more stuff going on in our lives that seem to hurt us more and more each day. But it’s ok because we look good on the outside, but we are dying from the inside out.

2) We look beat up, tired and exhausted. Because that is what we are. We have had situations come up in our lives that have take a toll on our exterior but also has hurt the inside. Those situations have hurt our hearts and minds. But it is ok, because since we are battle tested, it is something that we will get over but it will take a long time to make it all look ok. We have a pretty good foundation but needs some fixing for the future.

3) Some of us are looking great! We are in a great spot in our life. We are happy, excited, ready to go. To follow the good looking exterior side of our lives we are filled with goodness and readiness for the future. We know that it is great right now, but we also know that it might get tough. But that is ok because we know where our foundation is and we know that it is strong and will never fail.

Going into the summer months, with vacations, no school, jobs, warm weather:

What house describes you?

For me, I would say that I am right in the middle. I am in a pretty good spot. I love my wife, I love my job, I love what I have planned this summer, but there is definitely still more to focus on my foundation. To grow stronger on the inside.

What do you think? What do you need help with? What do you need prayer for?

Let me know because I would love to pray for you and help in any way I can.