Fresh Paint and Floor Wax

I realize that my posts are few and far between and that it may seem that I've put away my virtual pen, but I decided when I started my blog to only write when I had something that I thought would be worth reading. The last several months have held many changes for me and I've been tempted to share my thoughts many times, but nothing ever felt right . . . until this evening.

I'm starting a new teaching job in August and have spent some time over the last week getting things looking nice in my classroom. I still have a LONG way to go, but I am slowly making progress. I was really excited when my principal gave us permission to paint our rooms and thought that would be a great way for me to spruce up my space and make it my own. It took several trips to Home Depot and lots of sample paint colors to finally decide on the one I wanted - gray - how creative (but it looks awesome!).

Anyway, as I started painting I noticed that the walls of my classroom looked horrible. They had pencil marks, scrapes, scratches, dints, dings, and pretty much just looked like they hadn't had any attention in years. This gave me even more motivation to paint because I just wanted to cover up all the mess that was on those walls! I didn't even clean them (I did dust a few spots up high and around the baseboards - my mother would be proud!). I just grabbed my brush and roller and went to town covering up what looked like years of wear and tear that had been ignored.

Wow! That coat of paint worked wonders and the transformation in that classroom was amazing. I can't wait to get in there and truly make it my own. It's going to be awesome!

While I was there this evening finishing up a few things, a gentleman came in my room to let me know that they were going to be stripping and resurfacing the floors in the hallway. This basically meant that I would have to leave because I wouldn't be able to walk in the hall once they got started. This got me confused because there have been multiple times over the last few weeks that we haven't been able to go work at school because they were doing the floors. I mean, seriously, how long does it take?!?!

Come to find out, as a text from my principal informed the staff, the floors were not done correctly the first time, so they were going to have to strip them again and repeat the process. My goodness, that's a lot of work. I hope it gets taken care of and that the floors are in tip-top shape very soon.

I'm sure you're wondering why I felt like the painting of my classroom and resurfacing of the floors were a worthwhile subject for my blog. Good question . . . so here are my thoughts.

As I was driving home tonight and kind of replaying these events, God brought to mind a very practical application of these two very mundane things.

I was considering what I had done with a simple coat of paint and I realized that I had accomplished nothing except to cover up the old blemishes and scars that were already there and give the room a fresh outward appearance. I didn't take any time or energy to wipe away the grime that was there. I simply masked it to make it appear clean.

Contrast that with what the gentlemen were doing to those floors. Slowly and carefully they were removing each layer of the old and messed up surface so they can deep clean it and seal it with a new layer. When that process is complete that floor will look brand new and it will be evident that the process, though time-consuming and hard, accomplished an end result that will last for a long time.

The practical application is that we have something in common with those walls and that floor. We have layers of old dirt and grime and as we go through life we are left with lots of wear and tear, but we have a choice to make. We can choose to cover up what is there - sin, guilt, shame, anger, jealousy, bitterness, etc. - and give the appearance of being clean and new, or we can take the time and care to let God remove those layers slowly and methodically until our real self is exposed and our clean and pure heart is all that is left to work with. I like what The Message translation has to say in Psalm 51:7-15.

"Soak me in your laundry and I'll come out clean,
      scrub me and I'll have a snow-white life.
   Tune me in to foot-tapping songs,
      set these once-broken bones to dancing.
   Don't look too close for blemishes,
      give me a clean bill of health.
   God, make a fresh start in me,
      shape a Genesis week from the chaos of my life.
   Don't throw me out with the trash,
      or fail to breathe holiness in me.
   Bring me back from gray exile,
      put a fresh wind in my sails!
   Give me a job teaching rebels your ways
      so the lost can find their way home.
   Commute my death sentence, God, my salvation,
      and I'll sing anthems to your life-giving ways.
   Unbutton my lips, dear God;
      I'll let loose with your praise"

I don't like the process of working through those layers, but knowing the end result can make it worth the pain and heartache we sometimes must go through to get there. So, the next time I walk down the shiny waxed hallway and into my freshly painted classroom, I hope it will serve as a reminder of who I truly want to be and stir my heart to desire holiness.