Leah Richardson

Two things that hover around the top of my list of the HARDEST THINGS to do are…

Waiting on the Lord’s perfect timing

and

Living in the home during remodeling

This week I met with a lovely couple to help them make decisions and selections for 3 bathroom renovations. We are making all the decisions before any work begins, which is a good way to approach any remodeling project. They PLAN to remodel 2 now and the son’s bath after this work is complete.  But experience has shown me that once round I remodeling is complete…round 2 is like that pot we put on the back burner- wearily we decide it can be ignored it for a while!

During these times I carefully, hesitantly, but truthfully, choose my words.  When any of us are excited about making changes for the New and Better and have dreamed with faith about transformation, we certainly don’t want someone to throw cold water on our head and bring harsh realities into focus…but…with a gentle warning, I try to prepare my clients for the

DUST,

invaded privacy,

DUST,

demolition noise and commotion,

DUST,

lovely construction-worker boot tracks everywhere,

DUST,

Neighbors’ grimace-like smiles as they ask, “Could the truck blocking our driveway be moved, again!”

DUST,

living like “little house on the prairie”,

DUST,

did I mention DUST?!!!

If you have remodeled, you are probably smiling yet shaking your head cringing in remembrance, if not, I think you get the picture.  Living in remodeling will test the stability of the strongest family. So, again, I try to prepare my clients by giving them some idea of what they can expect.  In the Design/build business, Prep Work is a term which simply means to prepare or make ready a space for change.   Proverb 24:27 in the Amplified Bible tells us,

(Put first things first.) Prepare your work outside and get it ready for yourself in the field;

and afterward build your house and establish a home.

It encourages sensible preparation before we build or remodel our home so that we will pay attention, or attend well, to the life lived in it!  That preparation is an external and internal work in order to readily receive the New and Better.  I think about how often I have asked for the New and Better from God, but have not prepared my heart, my life, or my home to receive the very thing I asked.

I didn’t make the effort

take the time

open my  mind

enlarge my heart or

unfurl my hands to do the prep work first.

I really can’t emphasize enough just how important the Prep Work step is before remodeling.  Preparation does take time, money, sacrifices and paying attention to what seems like innumerable details, but it is so worth it in the end.  Jesus, the greatest master carpenter who hung door jambs on the earth and stars in the Heavens, understood the importance of making preparations in advance-

In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you.

I am going to PREPARE a place for you.

And if I go and PREPARE a place for you, I will come back and take you with me so you also may be where I am. John 14:2-3

I am so thankful for all the preparations Jesus has made for me, but how can I make the necessary preparations for the New and Better, whether it be in my home or heart?  I can start by taking note of my motives behind this desire for change.  When our motives are pure, our heart is right.  The Bible tells us if we handle the “little” well, we will be entrusted with “more”.  If the “little” trips me up, how much more would I stumble and fall over “much”.   Often times it is the times of prosperity that trip us up more than the wilderness times.  For me, when I start my day or project with the Word of God, stay in the Word of God and prepare through the Word of God, I am better equipped to handle all Jesus wants to remodel in my life.  Preparation begins and ends with the Word!

In case you are considering remodeling any time soon, I want to share some tips I give my clients for their earthly remodel:

1. MAKE DECISIONS BEFORE WORK BEGINS- Prepare. Do your homework and start a file with necessary names and phone numbers.  Get everybody, including family members, on the same page, so-to-speak. Coordinate and select all finishes and fixtures before work begins (sink, faucet, paint color, grout color, etc…)  This alleviates stress and curbs last-minute mistakes.  Make sure you post a copy for the contractor to be able to review at any given time

2.  ADDRESS AS MANY QUESTIONS AS POSSIBLE UP FRONT- Prepare. For example, where will the contractor stage work, tools and purchases?  How will trash be disposed?  Where do workers use the bathroom, park and eat lunch?  What day/time does work start and end?

3.  THE DUST FACTOR-Prepare. Close off the heating/air ducts in the rooms being remodeled.  This helps prevent dust spreading throughout the home.  If possible, have the contractor install a large trash shoot out of one of the windows in the room being remodeled.  This helps prevent dust and debris from being carried through the home.  If at all possible, vacuum daily.  Even in surrounding rooms, cover the draperies and anything that will be difficult to clean because sheetrock dust is very, very fine.

4. BE PATIENT.   Rarely is remodeling completed on time or within budget.

5.  KEEP REMINDING YOURSELF THAT IT WILL BE SO WORTH IT IN THE END!!!

This is a word for our heart remodel too….prepare, prepare, prepare, be patient and know that in the end- JESUS MAKES EVERYTHING SO WORTH IT!!

xo,   leah                     (some photos are my work and some from a great website you can go to for ideas for each room of your home- click here