14 What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? 15 If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, 16 and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,†without giving them the things needed for the body, what good[b] is that? 17 So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.
18 But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.†Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. Â
As many of you know, we’re moving to San Francisco. In about a month. And we’re selling our house. Our house which had some cosmetic repairs which needed to be done. Cosmetic repairs are often the ones which go ignored, because apart from looks they don’t really detract from living well in your home.
Well, they do detract from selling your home. And so even though we had none of these projects on our To Do list before Rob accepted his new job at Twilio they suddenly became the most imperative jobs on it. Highest on that list was freshening up the paint on the following surfaces:
- Master bedroom
- Kid’s bedrooms
- Stairwell and hallway
- Living room
- Dining room
- Half bath
- Front Porch
- House exterior
- Trim of windows- exterior
- Back deck (the largest deck in West Akron)
- Garage
While I was outside last Monday, painting the second coat on the front porch, my mind began to wander to the what ifs. What if we don’t have enough time? What if we discover some major problem and have to pay a ton to fix it? What if I let my kids spend an entire summer watching Avatar the Last Air Bender? What if no one buys my house?
As I was encouraging myself to consider the sparrows (Oh, Jesus, your comfort is what I needed) and not worry about the TV watching kids and how many more days I of work I still have to do, it dawned on me that this is a moment of faith being shown by works. I may be struggling to keep my mind on the now, and struggling to believe that God knows this will work out, but I do have faith that He will work it out somehow. I’m painting my porch for the next home owner, because I believe that the next home owner is coming. God will deliver.
If I sat on my duff and didn’t even put a sign in my yard, that shows that ultimate in lack of faith. I am not preparing for the answer to my prayers. Without work, my faith is dead.
So that’s my selling the house parable. And I have no choice but to believe that it will sell. I can’t make it sell by willpower or any other force. All I can do is paint it, and set aside any control I think I have over it. I have to have faith that it will work out.