Weekend of Renewal

Asparagus mini quiches for breakfast – check. Sandwiches made – check. Food into cooler – check. Bedding and pillows packed – check. Bexar’s necessities boxed – check. Four hours later, Mountain Man, the Engineer and Mountain Dog are finally loaded up in the truck and off for the weekend to their great camping and hiking adventure. A weekend of renewal they say. I like that; I want that; I NEED that! The idea quickly dissipates, as I have a long list of stuff I want to do while they’re gone and not much time to check them off!

Shortly after they have hit the road, I’m up at the computer, facebooking, blog surfing, and e-mailing. It’s overcast and raining and I just want to relax. Production comes to a stand-still as I plop onto the sofa and fire up the X-Box. Uh-oh. This is trouble…hours of trouble! Sure enough, 5pm rolls around and I’m still slouched on the sofa, my sweatshirt littered with white-cheddar popcorn kernels and an empty bowl of what was Bryer’s chocolate ice cream leaning beside my leg. It’s a hard day’s work to eat junk food and slouch around on the couch all day! I finally get up, not because I know I should clean or prepare the walls to receive some much-needed paint, but because I’m hungry! The desire to eat is so strong that it replaces the desire to slouch, so I throw some clothes on and hop in the car. A couple of hours later, after a nice long chat with Tatas, some Ben Franklin browsing, and a run through the oh-so-healthy McFatty’s, I arrive home, satiated and ready for some more chillaxin’. I resume the slouched position on the sofa and the X-Box addiction continues until I realize that I’m really cold. A nice hot tubby should do the trick, with a fragrant candle and a good book! Ahh, yes. Amy Carmichael certainly has a way with words. This book, I Come Quietly to Meet You, sounds relaxing. An old bookmark catches my attention and I turn to it, resisting the temptation to flip to page 1 because it’s been so long since I’ve read it. After turning just two pages, I realize that this certainly was no accident that I picked this book up. Now, I’m the type of person to believe there are no accidents, so this was no surprise, but sometimes I’m shocked that God cares about me and loves me on a personal, individual level. I know I should be, but I am.

“Come Forth as Gold” was the title of that tiny three-page chapter. And you can probably guess what Amy was discussing – yep, purification! She asked the Eastern goldsmith of their village how he knows when the metal is purified and he replied, “When I can see my face in it.”

Job 23:10 “But he knows the way that I take; when he has tested me, I will come forth as gold.”

I’m so thankful that God, my Refiner, is faithful to sit by my side and purify me until He sees His face in me. What a humbling thought! It seems that this shall also be my time of renewal. For these next few days, I will focus on repentance and purification, renewing my mind in Him and His Word. It doesn’t matter what the outside looks like if the inside is in disrepair. The house painting, hair coloring, and cooking and cleaning can wait. This, too, shall be my weekend of renewal.