Chaplain’s Corner – May 31, 2017
Ten years ago, I tired of looking at an old shed in our yard. Though useful for storage, it was not functional, it’s floors bowed and the doors no longer closed. It was time for a change.
De-construction. Carefully, I reversed the process by which it was built, peeling the layers ravaged by time. I was shocked to see that the floor joists were laying flat and bowed, rather than standing strong on their edge – dooming the sagging shed because of her poor construction and foundation.
This is an image of what happens in the first ninety days at Open House. The first several months for our case managers and residents involve de-construction, the gentle peeling back of years of life. The overt challenges of today often have a basis in the past. The process can be hard and painful. Though the peeling may feel like destruction, it is more so the reverse construction of our lives for a time and a purpose. The hard work of looking critically and exposing our often poor, worn and damaged foundations, offers the opportunity of a lifetime for re-building from the ground up.
Open House Ministries is built upon our foundation in Jesus. He is the great bedrock and firm understructure makes all of the difference for life. The entire weight of one’s life is transmitted through the walls down to the foundation, where our New Hope lies, and the Foundation provides the strength and integrity that we need to truly live. Jesus is the cornerstone of our lives. “See, I lay a stone … a chosen and precious Cornerstone, and the one who trusts in him will never be put to shame” (I Peter 2:6). Thank you, friends, for allowing us the privilege of participating in this noble construction process.
