Living in Us, Working with Us.

Suppose I decide to build a house. To begin with, I am quiet ignorant on what

has to be done, and so first of all I take a course on carpentry to learn the fundamentals

of house building. I follow up with some specialised reading. I get a set of blueprints

and buy all the necessary tools. Then I am ready to build the house.

I struggle by myself day after day. As the house grows, I find there are things

I have forgotten or never knew. I seem to be all thumbs. The saw doesn't cut straight.

The wood splinters.

I'm lucky enough to have neighbours who invariable have suggestions:

"Hey, that wall seems a little out of plumb. Are you sure that's the way to set a windowsill?"

The more suggestions they make the more nervous I get. Every time my neighbours show up,

I feel like giving up. They're a constant reminder of my failour. One day I explode,

" I can do without your advice!"

But there's a variant in this story. Someone comes by and sees that I am in trouble

with my construction.. Without criticizing or giving condescending instructions,

he takes of his coat, rolls up his sleeves, and goes to work beside me, sharing his skills and

energy with me. In short order, the building begins to improve, and I feel as if I'm doing

something again.

The presence of a skilled helper doesn't mean that I don't make any more mistakes, nor does

it mean I no longer feel any tension between what the house ought to be and my particular work

on it. What it does mean is that I'm transformed in my attitude. And that is what Paul's experience

was with the coming of Jesus Christ into his life.

Paul in essence asks, "Who will do something besides increase my sense of failure and condemn

me for being such a poor workman?" The answer? Jesus.

He''s living in us, working with us. And that should encourage all of us!

timeforINRI