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Print I’m in the process of moving and a friend of mine asked to see my apartment. I had to protest because of the mess it was in. There are boxes everywhere and all of my neat decorations are taken down and stored away in preparation for the move. I had to explain that she couldn’t see it because unless she had the vision of what it was, she wouldn’t see anything special. I remember when I found it. It was a diamond in the rough if I ever saw one. I came across this shabby brick building in the middle of the downtown area. It was surrounded by buildings and offices and there it stood, awkwardly standing on a hilltop covered in trees. I saw the sign outside and drove past it. The building stood out in my mind because it was in such stark contrast to its surroundings. I went back and wrote down the number and called the landlord. He gave me quite a bit of information about the building. It was built in the 1920’s and it has been in his family the entire time. His father inherited it after his father and then it was passed down to him. He admitted that he had let some of the outside maintenance slip, but he explained that the inside had its original décor. I was intrigued so I made an appointment to check it out. (I have always been a sucker for old buildings.) I met him and he gave me the key to the vacant apartment. As I stepped inside, I was amazed. The outside didn’t do it justice. Don’t get me wrong, the inside parlor needed work, but I could tell that I was in for a treat. I opened the door and immediately I was in love. I was met with an arched doorway and hardwood floors throughout. It had French doors to the bedroom and closet and inset bookshelves that were beautiful. After looking for months, I had finally found what I had been looking for—character. All of the other places were just duplicates of one another. They all had the same look, but I wanted something different. I was so excited that I called my father immediately and told him I had found the place that I always imagined myself living in. He drove down to check it out for me and meet my landlord. I could tell immediately that he wasn’t as thrilled as I was. I knew that he didn’t see the beauty that I did. Nevertheless, he knew that my heart was set on it, so he urged me forward. I signed the lease and began my journey of moving in. I brought a friend down to look at it, but she lacked the excitement that I was bubbling with. She walked around the place twice without saying a word. Finally, “This is it?” I was horrified. Couldn’t she see the jewel I had found? It was wonderful. I realized at that point, one of the most important lessons, it took someone who truly had a vision for its potential to recognize its beauty. After settling in and setting up everything the way that I wanted, I brought back my friend. “Wow, you sure have done a lot with this place. I would have driven away if I had seen it strictly in its original state.” She was able to appreciate its details after I had done my best to accentuate them. That was fine with me. I was the one who lived in it, not her; and I always knew how great it was and would be. I have found that contrast in how God sees us and how others see us is enormous. He sees us for our potential, for how He can make us. Others often only see what we are at in those moments of disarray and lack of care. It takes someone with vision and true love to search through the mess and find the beauty. Ephesians 2:10 tells us that “we are God’s workmanship.” Who better would know what we truly can be than the very one who made us. Take pride in the fact that you are a continual project. Philippians 1:6 states that, “Be confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” Don’t fret over those who don’t understand you. They haven’t taken the time to search for the character within you. ninetyandnine.com © 2004, ninetyandnine.com and this anonymous blogger ---------- |
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