Surprise Visitor

Today we had a surprise visitor. There was a knock on the door and we went to answer it thinking that it would be a FexEx package or something from UPS but instead there was a young woman with a camera. She asked if she could come and take some pictures of the house. She had a college project (she was majoring in photography at the art school across the street from us) and was to take pictures of places she used to live. Apparently she lived in the house a year ago. So, of course I am thinking, sure the kitchen and dining room are in relative order... that would be fine.

What she needed pictures of was the bedrooms upstairs. Of course I am in the midst of projects: getting all the kids clothes packed up that don't fit, re-organizing my part of the office upstairs and our bedroom has 6 loads of laundry on the floor that need to be washed.... so talk about embarassing. A perfect stranger in the house, in the places you least expect. I'm thinking, hmm, have I cleaned the bathrooms recently?

All this to say it got me thinking about my relationship with God. So often I want Him to see the parts that are clean, in order, and "picture perfect". But He wants to see the messy parts, the parts that are under construction. And He's there to help me change. Help me to order myself. But He's not embarassed or ashamed. He already knows what to expect and He's right there with me, accepting me just as I am and yet not letting me remain the same. What a good God we serve!