Before & After....and the Body of Christ

We have been scrambling for days to get our house ready for market, which has been both exhausting and gratifying, and this weekend was no exception. This first picture (which should more accurately say "during," I guess!) was taken earlier in the week. Dave has been working hard in short spurts of time to get some work done....and then this weekend happened....the body of Christ happened. On Friday, Dave's dad came over (along with a couple of guys from his crew) from North Carolina and tirelessly served us by building an amazing porch! Then, on Saturday, a friend from church organized a work day to help us get about a MILLION projects finished up around the house. Tons of friends showed up (filled with joy, no less) and gave a Saturday to work hard for our benefit...and we won't even be around to help them in the future! It may seem superficial, and I'm aware how our "need" is NOTHING compared to the sufferings of many around me; yet, I was truly affected to be helped in this way. We just don't deserve it; it's not logical. And it can only be explained to me by the way the gospel has transformed these people.....

This weekend was a reminder to me, not of how nice it is to have a great-looking house, but of how amazing it is to be saved by grace....saved from all my sins....and placed in the body of Christ. We are not alone, but are given this body, this extension of Christ, to walk through life with, bearing each other burdens and serving one another. It really is amazing gift, with beautiful, practical experiences that defy logic and come totally undeserved. I don't want to make the whole thing seem "super spiritual," but I'm genuinely aware how different this experience would be without our friends and family joyfully surrounding us and loving us (think: lots of money, lots of stress, lots of loneliness) ....and I'm aware that they do that because they've been transformed from loving themselves, to loving and serving others. I want to be more like these people!!

Here's the after shot of the porch....