If you follow me on social media, you’ve probably seen that we’ve been renovating our house. We started mid-June and are still going. We hired a few things out, but we’ve done most of the work ourselves along with help from some great friends, so thankful for them!
We’re to the point now where we see the light at the end of the tunnel, but we’ve definitely had some overwhelming moments:
- My husband took a month off work so we could tackle this project. We were also glad it coincided with the kids’ summer break, but that was more challenging than we anticipated. They were home and needed our attention, so we couldn’t work as quickly as we planned. My daughter had swim team practices and meets. Family came to town. We went out of town. We had a lot of life going on outside the project.
- ALL. THE. DUST. We removed old tile and it made our entire house so so dusty. I spent many hours cleaning and still have some high areas to reach.
- While our cabinets were being painted, the hallway to our children’s bedrooms was entirely blocked off for two days. We packed up and spent the night at my mom’s house.
- Last month we removed the toilet from the kids’ bathroom to remove the old tile and it sat in our backyard for about a week because we thought we could finish tiling quickly. We managed with only one bathroom until my mother-in-law came to visit, so we called someone to reinstall it the day she arrived. We just finished tiling that bathroom this past weekend, haha!
- Our stove was in our garage for about a month, which means we ate out almost every day. I usually love eating out because it means I don’t have to cook, but it did get old after a while. When we didn’t eat out, it was microwave meals, PBJs or Ramen Noodles.
- We had to pull up a bunch of tiles that didn’t adhere correctly because the mortar dried out too quickly. It took hours and hours and created more dust.
All this to say that it was tempting to just quit when things got tough. It was tempting to get mad and walk away and just leave things as they were—ripped apart and half done.
But that would mean the vision and plans we had for the house wouldn’t come to fruition. The potential of what the house could be would never be realized.
I think it’s the same with us, friends.
God has grand plans and a vision for our lives. But when His plan overwhelms us or gets difficult, we can be tempted to walk away from it and settle for what feels comfortable. We decide we’re okay with half done.
But then we’d be missing out on all that could be! We’d miss out on all the blessings, growth and opportunities that He will provide when we persevere.
Here’s a picture of my kitchen at the beginning, the overwhelming stage and here’s a picture of where it is now (about 85% finished):
It shows me so clearly the importance of perseverance, not just in this renovation project, but in all other aspects of my life.
Galatians 6:9 NLT says, “So let’s not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t give up.”
So friend, if you’ve been discouraged to quit lately, don’t give up! Blessings are awaiting you. Persevere so you don’t miss out on them! I’m cheering for you.
“The one who has called you is faithful, and he will do it.” – 1 Thessalonians 5:24