Undercover Reasons

We’re having our carpets replaced today. We were told there are hardwood floors on the first level, but we’ve been hesitant to unveil them. People cover things for a reason.

Redoing this house has been an adventure. The previous owners covered everything. Each room was plastered with different wallpaper, usually some textured version featuring various colors splattered or splashed in every direction. The floors were carpeted, again different colors for each room. You could see five from one spot. When we bought the house, we thought it was just cosmetics. Everything seemed to be in great condition, just not our style. Nothing a little paint and elbow grease couldn’t fix – right? Well …

We’ve found two holes under wallpaper. I’m not talking nail holes or spots where screw anchors were stripped from the wall. I’m talking actual holes – you could pass things through them. One was about the size of a man’s fist, the other about the size of my head. Both large enough you can’t fix them with just spackle. It took grafting; cutting the hole bigger before we could make it better.

In another room the walls simply crumbled when we removed the paper. Fixing that took a contractor, major destruction and rebuilding from scratch. It’s so great to have a fresh start with brand new walls, but it took an investment and a headache we had not anticipated.

But today, as they stripped the old carpet and padding, I was shocked. Beautiful oak steps stared back at me. Why would they cover that?! They hid something wonderful, colorful and smooth under something ugly, grey and rough.

People do cover things for a reason, but only they and God know what the reason is.

We want to make things better. We put on make-up and designer clothes. We learn the words and ways to convince people we are what we want to be, but looking better doesn’t make us better. Our thoughts may be just as dark as the neighbor we’ve condemned. We smile to cover the holes in our hearts.

Other times we’re just scared. We put on rags because we’re afraid. We think if people know what we really are, they’ll not like us anymore. We hide behind what other people think of us or what we think of ourselves. Covering our true selves feels safer.

Only God can heal our holes. Only He can offer us security. He made us as we are for a reason. He wants us to shine in His light. He wants to make us whole and perfect. The challenge is letting Him.

We have to take off our coverings and let Him renew us; let Him fill the voids and restore our natural beauty. It may hurt. It may require some destruction and rebuilding. It will definitely take time. But it will be worth it! Imagine the beautiful haven that will result … Safe. Secure. Strong and beautiful.