2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold the new has come.

 

As we surrender ourselves to the Lordship of Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit performs the process of renewing us. This renewal is a life-long process and requires our cooperation. While we can’t do this for ourselves, we must give ourselves up to God before the Holy Spirit can work.

 

This reminds me of something. When I married Jack, he had his father’s leather chair and ottoman. It was beautiful in its day, but over the years the leather cracked, the arms were worn out and the legs fell off. Needless to say, it was a mess BUT it was still a very comfortable chair. I used to cover it with blankets to improve its appearance because Jack loved that chair.

 

When we moved to Oklahoma, we decided to have it reupholstered. It was too expensive to have it done in California, but we could afford to do it in Oklahoma. We found a young man who did this type of work out of his home.

 

Jack was reluctant about taking it to him because it was the only thing he had that belonged to his dad. Finally one day, Jack said, “Let's take my dad’s chair to that guy and let him reupholster it.” We loaded up the chair and took it to him. I will never forget that day. Filled with emotion, Jack unloaded the chair and put it in the man’s shop. He told the man not to change anything about the chair, just rebuild it, fix it, and reupholster it in leather.

 

As we drove away that day, Jack was quiet. He had just surrendered a part of himself to someone he really didn’t know. The man was a master craftsman at his work. We had seen the beautiful work he had done on some other pieces but still, this was Jack’s dad’s chair; the only thing he had that belonged to his dad.

 

Jack had to surrender what he loved to the master craftsman if he wanted it to be renewed. It was difficult to do, but he did it. The sad part of the story is that Jack was killed before the chair was finished. He waited too long. He lived with the old, worn out, broken down chair for years when it could have been renewed long before. I do have the chair and I sit in it every day. It turned out beautiful. The man did a great job. It looks exactly the same as it always did only new. When I sit in the chair I remember Jack sitting in it just as he remembered his dad sitting in it.

 

What do you have that needs to be surrendered to the Master? Don’t wait any longer. Surrender it to the Master today. He will not fail you. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold the new has come. (2 Corinthians 5:17)

 

God really wants to……….turn the tide……….in your life.

 

Praise God!         Doreen

 

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