DIY
A well-completed DIY project is entirely satisfying. Yesterday, my husband and I made a trip to the hardware store for plywood, turned and unfinished furniture feet, paint and felt. We spent the afternoon sanding, sawing, glueing, turning screws, and painting. And, I just finished stroking on another coat of paint. Later, when the paint is dry, I will place felt on the bottom of the feet. My desktop shelf will be attractive and serviceable. Job well done.
In our world of online helps, guides, and videos, the avid “do-it-yourselfer” has an almost unending supply of ideas for everything from repurposing toilet paper rolls to upgrading a concrete patio slab into an oasis for outdoor living. I guess, when you think about it, all of us are born with a desire to “do it myself.” I remember when my children were toddlers and there was a regularly occurring cry of, “Me do it, mommy.”
This driving force for independence is generally smiled upon during the formative years, as parents encourage the acquiring of life skills by their young. But, here’s the thing: as children in the household of God we aren’t actually allowed to do life alone. Further more, we can’t. It takes the power of God through the Holy Spirit to live according to the Word of God and to obey His commands.
“Jesus said to him, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.” (Matthew 22:37-40 NKJV) Loving God with our whole heart and loving our neighbor as ourself requires constant abiding in the love of God and choosing to live a sacrificial life. This is a life-long journey of unlearning independence and learning radical dependence upon Him Who is able to present us faultless and blameless before the Father.
As is says in 1 Thessalonians 3:12-13, “And may the Lord make you increase and abound in love to one another and to all, just as we do to you, so that He may establish your hearts blameless in holiness before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all His saints.” (NKJV) There is a “with-ness” in the nature of God that brings us into something beyond ourselves and more than ourselves. God’s family is just that: a family.
I’m not really a true “do-it-yourselfer”. I like being part of a team. Sure, I could have built my little shelf all by my lonesome. I had the energy, resources, and skill to do it. Planning and accomplishing it with my husband, however, was infinitely more enjoyable. I was glad for his help and companionship, and it’s a memory of togetherness that I will cherish.
I am totally dependent upon the Lord, even when I think I can do it alone. He never intended that I should be anything but at His mercy, leaning always on His kind intention. Choosing to acknowledge Him as Lord and King and believing His promises allows me the great privilege and honor of belonging to Him. I am not my own. And I am profoundly grateful that I don’t have to “do it myself”.
Until next week, beloved, do everything with a whole heart as unto God.