Caution: Work In Progress

Warning: You are in a construction zone.

In fact, you are a construction zone. So am I, thank goodness! I'd hate to think (as would my wife, kids, and anyone else who knows me) that I am a finished product. I'm more like a roadbed that hasn't had the concrete poured yet. The foundation is there, but without a lot more work I'm never going to be any more than a dirt path.

Thankfully, that's not the case. I am a long term project. How long? Well, here's what the Bible says.

Philippians 1:6 He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.

Paul speaks of this transformative process several times in his epistle to the church in Philippi, and in many of his other letters. The consistent message is that while we become new creations when we accept Jesus Christ as our Savior (2 Corinthians 5:17), there is a maturation that must take place.

In other words, I, you, and everyone else who is a Christian, are works in progress. Construction zones. And from the sound of things, those orange barrels and reduced speed limit signs aren't going away any time soon. This is a big project, and God wants it done right.

That takes time.

So who's doing the work?

It'd be easy to simply say it's all in God's hands, and that's not completely wrong. It's also not completely right. Going back to Paul's letter to the Philippians, he says in Chapter 2, verses 12 and 13 that we are to "work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure."

That's a whole lot of work going on! We must note here, when Paul speaks of working out our salvation, he is not talking about earning God's forgiveness. That's not possible. Salvation is a free gift of grace. He is talking about the sanctification process, a whole other ball of wax.

That process of sanctification is our Christian growth and maturity. In other words, a work in progress.

Be Alert--workers ahead.

This is a common sign when nearing a work zone. You also may see, "Reduce Speed;" "Rough Road;"  "Lane Changes Ahead;" or the ever-descriptive "BUMP."

Come to think of it, these are all good things to remember when around others who are going through the same process we are. We're all undergoing construction. None of us are as good as we're going to be tomorrow, or the next day, or next year.

Keep that in mind when you have to slow down for someone else, hit a rough patch of road, make an unexpected lane change, or even hit a big old bump in life.

Construction isn't pretty, but in the end, we'll all be better for it.