Grand Sweep Daily
Ezekiel 42:15; 20 (NIV)
15 When [God] had finished measuring what was inside the temple area, He led [Ezekiel] out by the east gate and measured the area all around.
20 So [God] measured the area on all four sides. It had a wall around it, five hundred cubits long and five hundred cubits wide, to separate the holy from the common.
Good morning!
My father carried a tape measure in his pocket. He was a perfectionist with everything he did. I’ve never met anyone quite as meticulous as my dad. We couldn’t just “hang” a picture on the wall. It had to be perfectly symmetrical with the height and width of the wall. Furniture was centered perfectly. My mother said she never moved the sofa herself to vacuum because it was so heavy. I think it had more to do with my father’s opinion of where the sofa was repositioned on the wall. He moved it for her while she cleaned the carpet, and then, with his trusty tape measure, realigned the sofa in just the right spot.
I love to scrapbook. Like everything else in my life, I believe true art should celebrate its imperfections. I can be pretty fast at the Saturday scrapbooking crops I attend. Sometimes, I compete with my girlfriends just to see how many pages I can finish in one eight-hour sitting. It is not uncommon for me to compile a small album in one fell swoop, journaling excluded. Some of my friends spend weeks just getting one page perfectly formed. I just slap on the stickers and go! I’ve learned from experience that I can never get a scrapbook page to be absolutely perfect. It is a work in progress. I’m telling a life story, a continuing saga, and that always leaves room for change and growth.
Can you imagine what it must have been like for Ezekiel to follow the Lord around, studying God’s handiwork? The Lord is perfecting His temple. Every length, every corner, every decoration was in perfect harmony and consistent with God’s master plan. He is the author and designer of His creation. I know He expects perfection from me, and one day, I will reach His goal for my life as He perfects me in His love. I’m not there yet – not even close. I know one day the imperfect pages of my life’s work will someday become His perfect work of art in me.
How do we measure perfection in life? We look to the Father, the author and perfecter of our faith. We see His glory revealed through the life, death and resurrection of His only Son, our Lord, Jesus Christ. I am His work in progress. He is not finished with my heart just yet.
Grace and peace,
Deb Spaulding
Pray for: holiness of heart. More than anything else, I long to stand before my Father perfected in Christ’s love without His covering, we fall short of the mark. God expects perfection from you and me. I pray that in that holy moment, He will change us from imperfection to His perfection. Until then, we move forward by faith.
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© Copyright 2007, Deb Spaulding
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