Day 43 - Gouges

Day 43 – Let me take you on a journey to my kitchen. My house is about 20 years old at this point. When I moved in 10 years ago, the ONE thing I hated about my house was this green and white tile I had throughout the majority of my main floor. I didn't mind the forest green wallpaper in the kitchen. It had been tastefully done. However, 10 years later it is starting to peel and it was beyond time for it to come down!!!

I started to peel that shiny vinyl in huge strips which is always a great start. However, the progress stopped there. I did various methods to remove the paper backing and paste. I am NOT a novice at this and know what works. Let me just tell you, the more paper I removed, the more scared I got. I now know why they wallpapered. There are gouges and damage to the wall in so many places. Then there is the paste that can't even be removed with a Scotch pad. It is easily 1/8^th to ¼ inch thick in certain places. It will NOT come off no matter what I do. I have put a permanent kink in my neck scouring and scrubbing. Then, finally, there is my nemesis wall that I have affectionately named. Not only does it have that thick glue, it is also painted a forest green color. I am thinking they painted it with 5 shades of green and used just general craft paint to paint it. Green actually comes off on my sponge even though I'm not using harsh chemicals. I would love to quit at this point but I'm committed now. I can't quit because it would look horrible. I need to persevere and work through the problems and fix them the right way. It is going to take time and it is going to be painful.

How often do we put a band-aid on a major wound and hope it will heal without treating it the right way? How often do we cover up sin hoping that no one will notice the gouges and damage that is there? It is stated in Psalm 32:5: ⁵ Then I acknowledged my sin to you
       and did not cover up my iniquity.
       I said, "I will confess
       my transgressions to the LORD "—
       and you forgave
       the guilt of my sin.

We need to not hold back and show the flaws to God so that we can have true forgiveness. When we come to Him and ask forgiveness, then he truly forgives. Then, just as in the prodigal son (Luke 15), we are covered with the robe of righteousness and we are seen white as snow. It becomes His victory story and not our shame that shows. No longer are we a wall full of gouges and imperfections. There is no need to cover it with shiny paper. We need to persevere and push through the pain of fixing and perfecting ourselves to be more like Jesus.