Solid foundations

So, I have en eternal ringing in my left ear. It has been there for about 16 years now. Hmmm, as long as I have been in ministry. The old adage goes like this, "If your ears are ringing, then somebody is talking about you,"

For the last two months, I am sure the mailperson has been uttering my name. Rrriiinnngg. You see the mailbox and connecting post are / were flopping around quite a bit. When you would pull on the door to open, the entire unit would move about 3-5 inches.

Yesterday, I began to dig out the post and see if I could bring some stability to the floppy mailbox. To my surprise, the post was one of those mini-auger designs with the 3 inch bit attached to a 1/2 inch rod that was about 18 inches long. Have your eyes glazed over yet? In theory, this design works well, except over 20+ years time the mailbox had become unstable due to countless door openings, snowplow assaults, and softened dirt. Another issue was the mailbox was not to USPS height requirements. It was a bit high. Oh, and It needed a fresh coat of paint too! I know you may be thinking, "Why not just trash the thing and go get a brand new mailbox and post?" Well, we're talking about restoration and redemption here.

All this to say, the foundation of the mailbox was insufficient to sustain a solid presence. Enter the wonders of concrete in a paper bag! With some measuring, I was able to lower the mailbox post to USPS regs and with some elbow grease was able to sand the metal post. Several coats of primer later and I was ready to set the post and plumb it to somewhere close to straight. ;) Two bags of concrete back into the hole and voila the post is solid once again!

Our spiritual journey takes a lot of unexpected shots. These assaults look like anything that challenges our trust and faith in God. Over a period of time, doubt and fear rob us of assurance Christ wants us to possess and our lives wobble a great deal. Enter Jesus Christ and the hope He alone can bring to a wobbly soul. He is the Rock and our solid foundation. He sands the rust off our hearts and brings new life to us. We are once again a strong witness to His love and healing care. We are set for years of reliable service to the kingdom of God. All it took was for God to enter in and set us straight.

"My soul finds rest in God alone; my salvation comes from him. He alone is my rock and my

salvation; he is my fortress, I will never be shaken. (Psalm 62:1-2, NIV)

(Ready for the final coat of paint)