A Driveway Parable

My driveway was a mess.  Parts of the concrete were greatly uneven.  This made parking difficult for us.

 

Yesterday, some guys came to our home and repaired the driveway.

 

Here is what they did:

First, they used a jackhammer to break it up.  This got messy, but it had to be done.  And it required some hard work. 

Then they cleaned the area out.  Chunks on concrete and roots were removed and thrown away.  It took some time, but they did a great job of removing the big and little pieces of debris from the site. 

Next, they backed up a big truck and began to pour newly mixed concrete.  It filled up the entire area that had been cleaned out a few moments earlier.  Those guys made sure every corner was saturated with it.

Finally, they smoothed out the newly poured concrete.  They used some tools to make sure it was just right.  When they finished, there were no bumps and no rough edges.  It looked so much better!

As I watched the guys do their work, I thought about how God does a similar sort of transformation within us.

Just like my driveway, our hearts can get a little messed up.  Uneven.  Rough.  So God, at times, has to break things up in our lives.  He doesn't use a jackhammer on us.  Thank goodness for that!  But He does use His word, His Holy Spirit, other people, or even our circumstances.  Then He will effectively help us take out all the trash, debris, and rocky parts.  Then, He fills us with His Holy Spirit.  By this I mean He pours His own presence into our lives.  In doing so, He makes us right and smooths us out.  When He does His work, it's mighty impressive.

I'm glad those fellows fixed up my driveway.  But I'm even more glad that God fixes up our lives.  The job He does in our hearts and minds is something to be celebrated.

Let's all allow God to work in us.