We started the night looking for something to watch on TV. And after going 0-for-210, settled on the Home and Garden Channel as a good background to catch up on our reading. The show House Hunters was on, where some poor soul gives his budget amount to a realtor, who immediately shows them houses over their budget, and then watches as they squirm looking at homes that sorta meet their criteria, but fall short in some area. And that cost more than they can afford anyway. Like we can do without indoor plumbing, or we don't need a dining room, we can eat on the sofa with the plates on our laps like in school. I have watched as the more skillful agents take all the joy out of home purchasing, all within a half hour time frame. Some are so bad you cannot turn away, like hearing the brakes squeal and waiting for the impact. So you have an idea of what else was on TV that night. But stay on it did, for it was about to get interesting, for this agent was to meet his match.
She was unattractive, rude, offensive, demanding, had no sense of style, and was wearing the ugliest shirt I had ever seen. My first thought was if this was the best shirt on the rack, how bad could the others have been? But it might have been the perfect shirt for her, as it was her best quality, if bad taste qualifies as a quality. In every house they looked at she found fault. The yard wasn't big enough for her to graze in. The pantry was too far from the bedroom. Or the paint clashed with her shirt, and rather than part with the shirt, she would be pressed into painting the walls. Oh, the problems of middle America. She was also the perfect wife, berating or belittling her wimpy husband the whole show. I'm not sure which dating pool he got her out of, but if she was the best, like shirts and agents, the others must have been terrible-or worse, because she was. She could have been the poster girl for why men stay single! A one woman team of annoyance, setting out to do all the agent didn't do to compliment him on making a home purchase a nightmare. And she did-I think we truly had a lose/lose situation, wait till she meets her new neighbors.
But style is personal, or maybe more precisely lack of style. It takes a trained eye, or more precisely an eye that can see the potential to make a good buy. Whereas he can see an old car with faded paint that needs a good detailing, the trendy woman with him only sees an old car with dirty carpet. And where the trendy wife is already bored with what she is wearing, anticipating the next trend so she can be stylish, and seen and envied by her public, her husband sees the old car as a labor of love. As a romance promising all the things his wife can't or won't deliver, such as peace of mind, companionship, and something to look forward to that fits in the garage. He sees the potential, she is miserable that someone may see her near the car-or worse yet her husband. She has no future because she has no right now! And as he spends more time with his new/old car, he will get more satisfaction out of the time and energy he puts into the car than the time spent listening to her complain about her new hairdo-by the way, don't touch it! Don't even ask her to go for a ride, no helmet will ever touch this head! Miserable, and hoping to add you to her list of things not up to her standards, she never will know the love her husband has for her. It is all about her-and I think I just saw her on this show.
Your talent is exceeded only by your potential. And true potential is never realized except in Jesus Christ. While others see the old car with dirty carpets, Jesus sees the heart. He shows us that changing from the inside out produces real change, and a beauty that shines deeper than any detailing. A beauty that comes from the heart, and a beauty that desires to be shared with others. He makes us new creatures, and tells us "behold-pay attention, the old person is passed away!" We may look the same, but we aren't, as we have passed from death to life. Before you were just painted up to look natural like a corpse, now you need no makeup to hide behind-it is in you, and part of you! You have a future, but more importantly a today! And a today to enjoy and share with others. And while you old friends just see the dirty carpet, you are a new creation! And the dirt in them is more evident than ever before. They need Jesus!
A man once told me the best view of his motorcycle was from the seat looking over the handlebars. And I agree. I can see where I am, but also where I am going. and it matters not which bike I ride, the view will always be ahead-never back. Maybe that is why those of us Christians who ride have a better insight into Christ-for motorcycles and a life in Christ don't have a reverse! We only have a future! Old carpet, bad paint, leaky gaskets, and all. Bad paint on walls, a yard that needs mowing, and fences to mend. It is all external, and will only change from the inside after we make the decision to change. And a worn out Bible like a worn out motorcycle only testify to the many miles both have travelled together. The problems encountered and the victories won. Something perfume, new styles, a haircut, or clean carpets can't duplicate-for we have a relationship! With the living God! Forever!
Don't let the world or others steal your joy. Ride with Jesus. Shop with Jesus. Hang out with Jesus. And find as He changes you, you want to change to be more like Him. And enjoy the fact that people will notice you more than the clothes you wear or the bike you ride. "There's something different about you, Mike? What happened?" Let me tell you about my Jesus.
From houses to blouses, and from bikes to yikes, Jesus Christ changes lives! Let Him change yours today! It just may affect the way you look at TV!
If only buying a house was this easy.
love with compassion,
Mike
matthew25biker.blogspot.com