A New You

    Several years ago, Linda and I had were partners in a commercial property investment. Our part was the management of the property, which Linda took care of. But we came across an opportunity to sell at quite an increase for what the partnership purchased it for. The prospective buyer was a gas station/convenience store located next door. We had rented to a competitor and the buyer wanted to get the property to both expand and eliminate their competition. Because of that, they were willing to pay over market value.
    At one point, I had to show the property to a rep for the company interested in purchasing from us. As I took him around, I began to inform him of tenant issues and problems with the building, mechanicals, etc. He interrupted me and said something like, “I really don’t care about any of that. We’re going to build a new facility here. These tenants won’t be here long and the building will be torn down. It’s the property we are interested in. We want it to be ours.”
    I couldn’t help but think back to my conversion. I kept telling God about all my faults and failures. No doubt, I needed to repent and God wanted to hear my confession. But he wasn’t looking at reforming me. He wasn’t just going to do a “fix-up” job. He gave me a redesign and a rebuild from the ground up. But I needed to give him ownership. Once I belonged to Him, he took over.
    Sure you’ve got faults and failures. And all of us have a past. But Paul said in 2 Corinthians 5:17, “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!”  I like the way the New Living Translation puts this verse, “Those who become Christians become new persons. They are not the same anymore, for the old life is gone. A new life has begun!”
    It’s almost as if God said, “You are not the same person anymore. I demolished the “old you” on that property and created the “new you” in its place. You are a new creation! And you are mine!”
    I’m not saying, “Just forget about your sins, it doesn’t matter.” It does. Sin matters. I am saying that God wants to do so much more than just fix you up a little, only to break another day. God doesn’t want to reform you. He wants to transform you! But that won’t happen until He owns the property.
    Isn’t it time to turn it over to Him? There’s a new you waiting!
    “Behold, I am making all things new!”  –Jesus (Revelation 21:5)