Seeing Past The Surface

This week I've been spending a good deal of my time painting at work. I can't say I've ever done much of it before, but I got a quick crash course this week.

The amazing thing about paint is that you can take something that looks so weathered and beaten and make it look completely brand new with just one coat of paint.

Unfortunately though, that paint will start to dull and it won't be long before it starts to flake away. It's a temporary solution to a permanent problem.

Maybe that's the reason why when God works on our hearts, He never does a surface job because He knows it'll only be temporary. No, when God does something, He digs deep down to the core of the issue and does His work.

Unfortunately many times as Christians we don't like this process because it's a little too long and painful. So we slap on our own coats of paints and ignore what is rotting underneath. And while temporarily that may make us look good for a day, a week, a month, or maybe even a year, God sees past that. He sees the cracks, He sees the stains- He sees what needs replacing.

And so with gentle hands and a patient heart he slowly chips away at our coats of paint until the real problem is exposed. And when it is, He doesn't leave it out there to flaunt: He removes the problem and restores things to the way they should be.

This is never an easy process and it's usually not quick: it was never meant to be. But it is the only way that we can be truly transformed from the inside out.