“REED” This

 

Unfinished

 

Today, I needed to go out and see how the new church building was coming along. I made my way up Frederica Road through all the beginning of summer traffic without too much trouble. There were no workers present as it was lunchtime, so I was alone with God as I strolled through the building. It was quiet with just the sounds of songbirds, the breeze blowing through the trees rustling the leaves, and my footsteps. I was thanking God for all the work that had been done and prayed for the continued protection of the workers as they constructed the building. I looked around with amazement as excitement filled me once again. The exposed framework was quite intriguing as it all fit together to define space and give structure and support. I thought about how so much of what I saw would soon be covered with sheetrock and other finishing materials and never be seen again. Yet, it would still be there accomplishing what it was meant to do. I envisioned how things would look once everything was done. It will look beautiful and function as designed. It will be just what we need and provide space to meet for Bible study, worship, fellowship, and equipping for us to go out and share the gospel, the love of Christ, and minister to the needs of our Jerusalem and beyond. It will be finished. But for now, it is unfinished.

 

It made me think about people. All of us are unfinished. As Christians, we are all on that journey of sanctification, becoming more and more like Christ. It reminds me of a song from an old children’s musical. The lyrics are,

“He’s still working on me,

To make me what I need to be.

It took Him just a week to make the moon and the stars,

The sun and the earth and Jupiter and Mars.

How loving and patient He must be

‘Cause He’s still workin’ on me.”

The “still working” is a great comfort. None of us are perfect. Some are closer to perfect than others, but we are all still a work in progress. And none of us will be finished until God completes everything in us. As we look around, we must remember that when ministering with other people. We want people to be patient with us as we are still growing in our faith and in our walk with Jesus, so we must be patient with others. Like our new church building, we may look good now, but we’ve still got a way to go before we are done. There are a lot of things that still need to be done on that building as we have a lot of areas where we individually need to grow. The wonderful blessing is we know there will come a time when the building is finished. And, God will continue to work in and through us until He has accomplished and finished His desire for our lives. Philippians 1:6 says, “And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue His work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.” NLT

 

That new building is already doing great things for God even though it is unfinished. It is creating excitement among us and this community. It is providing work for multiple people. And it is already a testimony of God’s faithfulness, power, and love for His people as well as people who are lost. May each of us be an unfinished masterpiece for Him.

 

Bro. Paul Reed

 

Tuesday, June 1, 2021