Cinder Block

The day was beautiful..I put Bentley in the car and headed to the bay to finish up a project I had started weeks ago. The bases for two outside pole lights framing the entrance to the pier needed to be painted. They were built of those gray cinder blocks...topped with a cast stone. I knew there was left over paint in the tool room...so...I stopped by the local hardware store picked up a brush and I was ready! The bay is and always will be one of my places of peace. I grabbed the huge bucket of left over paint from when the house was painted earlier in the season...headed to the water front, Bentley following, hobbling on down the long sidewalk. She planted herself under a shade tree....I planted myself in front of the cinder blocks. The water was calm but as I worked I could hear it as it gently and occasionally rolled into the bulkhead. Blue sky and not a cloud in sight. Sooo you have got the picture!

But the real story is about the cinder blocks. The bucket was big and I had to dip deep and tilt to get to the paint...(I should have gotten a tray as well as a brush at the store...a sure sign of lack of experience) And after the first stroke of paint...I knew It was gonna take a bunch of paint to cover this inconsistent , porous, rough edged surface....and I wasn't sure how much paint it would take..and how much I had. So I started by painting a base coat on all sides of the short, two square columns. The blocks absorbed the paint the moment I put it on....but the tiny porous holes remained uncovered....until I rounded back and repainted and then repainted again....this time using my grand daughter Catherine's approach to painting by gobbing it on. A professional would cringe at my work but standing back with an open mind...it looked just fine...the gray had been transformed into a beautiful off white base with a sandy colored top stone....and the "look" was complete...and clean....and finished!

Since our inception, we have been painted with coats and coats of ideas, perceptions,teachings, attitudes, traditions, concepts, personalities and beliefs...all masking our true identity. We absorb what is around us....before us....and the experiences that embank upon us. But our true identity lies in our behind the scenes composition...no matter what appearance we generate on the outside. As I was painting.. I thought about these cinder blocks. I can change the appearance of them, and dress them up but their original composition remains in tact. Cinder blocks are sturdy, porous cement blocks that have hollow insides....are relatively inexpensive...and widely used...in construction and for other purposes. Hollow yet sturdy, porous yet strong, low in aesthetics yet high in competency. When looking at those characteristics...I see similarities in my own life...

1) Hollow - If I seek only the things of this world...I will remain in a hollow state of existence...forfeiting the riches and blessings that come from doing the right thing in the eyes of Christ; trusting his ways, seeking his wisdom, obeying his call, and being faithful...to Him....in all situations and circumstances

2) Porous - I must be on guard as to what I allow my mind and spirit and body to adsorb...For many are the offerings and few are the true treasures.

3) Aesthetics - It is not what is on the outside that holds favor with Christ...it is what and who is cemented in our minds and hearts that give each us the true strength to stand up in this world of cratering ideas and morals. If we build our walls unto Christ..he will fortify us when the waves of torrent winds of change and adversity come barreling in.

Luke 17:20-22
20Once, having been asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, Jesus replied, "The kingdom of God does not come with your careful observation, 21nor will people say, 'Here it is,' or 'There it is,' because the kingdom of God is within you."

We all can dress up and paint up and look good on the outside...but our true strength lies from what we are made of within. The "hollow" aspect continues to catch my attention...even as I am coming to a close in this writing. For we all have dreams, and wishes and prayers to be answered...but in the midst of all of our asking...how many times have we filled our hollow places with thanksgiving....instead of mere requests. Think a minute of how Christ would fill those hollow empty spaces....do they line up with what you are filling them with...do they line up with mine? Just a thought!

It was a truly beautiful day that I was blessed to enjoy. I laid beside Bentley, my lab, in the grass, looking up at the sky...and thinking....I don't take time enough to be still and be glad for the moments and blessings that I have been given....and I thanked God for breaking me away from the trivial pursuits of daily routines and reviving my soul unto Him.

Dear Lord, Your blessings are infinite, your love supreme. Help me to love you more...Amen

Praise God wherever you are and whatever situation He has allowed you to be in . . . His glory will shine through!