We celebrate Christmas because the birth of Jesus meant His eventual death, and life for all who believe.   ~~~   I love the nostalgia of Christmastime--the music, time with family, decorations, gatherings, the sights, sounds, smells, and food. It is certainly a time of celebration. But it is more than nostalgic memories. Christmas is a time to celebrate the story of our faith. And nostalgia is a weak foundation for faith. We need more than warm fuzzies and sweet sentiments. When we have a deeper understanding of the story of Christmas, we find that it is easy to celebrate. He is worth celebrating! At the time of His birth, people had been living through 400 years of silence from God. He no longer spoke through prophets, no longer worked miracles. Year after year, decade after decade, generation after generation of nothing. I wonder if you can relate. And then a baby is born: “ He will be called Emmanuel, which means God with us.” After living through generations of silence--a baby. God with skin on, God incarnate, God in the flesh. No longer 'God out there' or 'God who I’ve only heard about,'  but God with us, God among us. The God who had gone radio silent was now present in the most human, imperfect circumstances. If this baby had only been born and lived here to show us what God is like, that would have been remarkable. But there’s more. He called ordinary people to follow Him. He taught things that infuriated the religious but comforted the broken. He healed those society told Him to ignore. His message to the self-righteous? Repent. His message to the unrighteous? Grace. Eventually we see the angry, religious, prideful send Him to the cross. The Creator of the world now crucified by His creation. It looked as though His movement had become a sinking ship. This cross becomes the instrument of death, the death designed for a criminal, the death designed to make a spectacle of the guilty. But guilty He was not. Imagine if you were one of His followers and after watching His grueling death, silence. Minutes and hours and days passed. Was He who he said?...Was I a fool to believe?...I’ve given up my life to follow Him, now what? They waited and they prayed. If that had been the last page of the story, we’d all be fools for celebrating. But since this darkness didn’t have the last word, we can rejoice. …An empty tomb, a knock on the door, a surprise meeting on the road...one by one He appears to His friends. This God who came to His creation as a baby grew and died and now was alive. Alive. We later learn this death was on behalf of all who believe. Yes, it was guilt and crime and sin that caused Him to go to the cross, but it wasn’t His guilt and crime and sin. It was mine. It was yours. It was God’s will to crush Him because it was through this crushing that you and I escape death’s crushing weight. His death brings us life. Willing to step away from all the richness and glory of heaven, He condescended to a criminal’s death because of His great love for His people. We celebrate the baby because He is Emmanuel, because He proved God’s love to us in a gruesome death, and because He displayed God’s power to us by rising from the dead. His message to you and me? Believe.

We should trust God even when we can't see the full picture.   ~~~   Today is my FAVORITE day of every project- REVEAL DAY. Not only does reveal day commemorate the end of a project, today is the day I get to find out if all the blood, sweat, and tears of the project was worth it. And, I usually have my answer the second my client walks through the door. You see, anytime I’m doing a project for a client, I always request for them to leave at least some part of the renovation a surprise. So, depending on how early in the project I convinced them to walk away, reveal day will be the first time they have been back in the renovation space for quite some time. Now, I certainly understand and respect my client’s desire to stay involved throughout the renovation, but if I can convince them to walk away and leave the project in my hands for at least a portion of the renovations, I have found the following advantages: #1 They get to avoid the drama. There is ALWAYS drama and dilemmas that come up at every project. If I can convince my client to stay away from the jobsite, not only does it mean they are relieved from any decision-making, it also means I shelter them from the everyday drama that comes up. I try to only involve them if it is something that will affect their budget. As long as a solution is found and the project stays on track, they don’t need to worry about the twists and turns that take place to get the project from the before to the after. Sometimes ignorance truly is bliss. #2 I can go a little more risky in my design choices. There are so many times I get an idea in my head that I feel 100% confident my client will like, but because it is not something they have seen before or is an out of the box idea, they are a little hesitant to take the plunge. But nearly 100% of the time if they trust me, those design risks will be one of their favorite parts of the project come reveal day. For example, on this project my client knew the overall theme of this short term rental was going to have the feel of a sports locker room and he gave me the go-ahead to make it happen. But if I had told him I wanted to put OSB board- a building material that is usually hidden as wall sheathing or floor underlayment, not prominently featured as wall treatment - he might have thought I was crazy. Luckily we have worked together before so he has learned to trust me. #3 And of course the final advantage keeping the client away from the project is the longer they have been away, the more exciting the reveal! Depending on the stage of the project we were at when they made their exit, they might only have a vague idea of the overall design story and have had to rely on their imagination to picture the details. My goal is to always exceed their imagination and expectations. I find that the earlier they put their faith and trust in me for the project, the more I want to wow them in the end. As I think about these advantages to the surprise reveal it makes me think about the ultimate reveal that awaits those who have put their faith and trust in Christ Jesus. Heaven Since the beginning of creation God has chosen to reveal some things to his children while some things have remained hidden. While I could never begin to grasp the mind of Christ, I do believe that the Lord chooses to keep some things hidden from his children for the same reason I like to keep my clients in the dark during a portion of the renovation. He wants to shelter us from the drama and troubles that come with knowledge. I mean just think about it. Adam and Eve lived in a perfect, protected, and provided-for paradise in the garden of Eden with only 1 rule to follow: Don’t eat from the tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. Up until that first bite, God had sheltered his children from all that was evil in the world. But when Adam and Eve chose to share in the knowledge of good and evil, they forevermore deprived themselves of the paradise and daily communion God had prepared for them. Instead knowledge brought death. God continues to keep some things from us for our own good and protection. In Deuteronomy 29:29 Moses says: “The Lord our God has secrets known to no one. We are not accountable for them, but we and our children are accountable forever for all that he has revealed to us, so that we may obey all the terms of these instructions.” In addition to our protection, some things will remain a surprise because we simply cannot understand or comprehend his plan. While I did communicate to my client that I wanted to create a locker room kind of feel in this space, it wasn’t until he saw the end result that he could fully grasp what my plan was. There are many examples of this in the Bible. When God told Noah to build a boat, do you think Noah’s human mind could begin to grasp what his future would hold? It is believed that the flood was the very first time it had ever rained. Therefore, there was no way Noah could picture the calamity the Lord predicted, he simply had to build in faith. Or think about our greatest example- Jesus Christ himself. All throughout the Old Testament the prophets predicted Jesus’ birth and life. And yet his children did not recognize him when he was born. They could not grasp that the predicted Savior of the world would carry a cross instead of a sword. That He came to serve instead of being served. While some things are intentionally hidden and others are just too big for our human minds to comprehend, if we will have faith and trust and obey the Lord’s plan, I guarantee the end reveal of eternity with the Lord our God in Heaven will be greater than anything we could ever hope or imagine. Thanks for allowing me to share another renovation with you and for joining me as we discover God’s love and restoration for our lives here on Storybook Homes.

Our time on earth is temporary, so we should use it to make disciples.   ~~~   Welcome to another episode of Storybook Homes. Today, I’m standing in a vacant commercial rental space that in a few short months will be home to a local media marketing firm. Right now, it is just an empty shell, but I have been tasked with the job to design a space that will accommodate more than 50 workstations with room to add additional desks as the company grows. This empty space represents a couple of things to me. First, it represents potential. It’s essentially a blank slate just waiting to be transformed into the ideal space for my client. If there had been a bunch of walls already erected in this space, my client might have had a hard time figuring out how their company could work within the given parameters. But since it’s wide open, there are no barriers to work around, they can utilize the space however best suits their needs. It’s also a reminder that this space is temporary. The conditions of the lease state that any walls erected have to be temporary, so that if the next tenant does not want the walls they can be easily removed and returned to the empty shell. This works well for my client because they have plans to build their dream office in a few short years and they view this space as just a stepping stone to their permanent home. Knowing they don’t plan to be in this space long, they have requested the majority of the budget and design to be focused on things they can take with them to their permanent space. This not only includes furniture and decor, but they have also opted for moveable room dividers to separate office spaces instead of walls. I’ve not done anything quite like this before so, I’m looking forward to the creative challenge. This empty space reminds me of another empty space that we read about in the bible. The empty tomb. The place where Jesus was laid to rest after his death on the cross is not special because it was an empty burial spot. It’s special because of what that empty tomb represents. It represents the ability we now have for our sins to be removed and to live with Christ in heaven, forever. If Jesus still occupied that tomb, we would still be relying on the law to temporarily atone for past sins with no real hope of ever living up to the standard God requires. But, because Jesus is no longer in that tomb, it proves that he once and for all conquered death and sin. If we believe in him and trust him to remove our sins, we too can live blameless with the Father in heaven. That empty tomb is also a reminder that our time on earth is temporary. Jesus came to earth, died, and left the tomb empty so that we could live permanently with him in Heaven, not on earth. In Hebrews 13:14 we read: “For this world is not our permanent home; we are looking forward to a home yet to come.” Jesus encouraged his followers to look beyond the temporary toward the permanent. During the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus preached: “Don’t store up treasures on earth, where moths eat them and rust destroys them, and where thieves break in and steal. Store your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy and thieves do not break in and steal.” While this marketing firm knows they will only occupy this space for a short time, that doesn’t mean they put their work on hold until they can move to their permanent space. Rather they will make the most of their time in this space to grow and expand their company to ready themselves for their bigger, better permanent location. The same should be said of our time on earth. After Jesus abandoned the tomb he gave his disciples the following instructions for living out their temporary time on earth as they awaited their permanent home: “Go, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the ends of the age.” Matthew 28:19-20. If you’ve never put your trust in Jesus and asked Him to forgive your sins, let me encourage you to do that today. And if you have been saved by His grace, let’s live out our time here on earth as he commanded. Thanks for allowing me to share another renovation with you and for joining me as we discover God’s love and restoration for our lives here on Storybook Homes.

We should be careful to take Scripture in context and not twist its meaning.   ~~~   Design Inspiration can be found anywhere and everywhere. Current clothing fashion trends might influence upholstery choices, nature often inspires paint pallets and your favorite coffee shop might have a cool wall treatment you want to try in your own home. In addition to these everyday encounters, we also have home and garden television, websites, and social media platforms that constantly feed us with new ideas and inspirations. These are all resources I have used when coming up with design plans for projects I’m working on. Now sometimes I will copy a design trend I’ve seen online or in a home. For example, the layered rug look I used in this living room was not an original idea, I copied this look from a picture I had seen online. But more times than not, rather than copying an idea directly, I like to figure out my own interpretation of a design that inspires me. This happened recently when I tried to figure out what kind of exterior cladding I wanted to use on this home. I was inspired by a wall treatment I had seen several designers use online that used a pattern of short and long batten strips to create a feature wall in a room. In all the examples I had seen, it was always used as an interior wall application. And while board and batten is a very popular exterior cladding option, I had never seen batten strips applied in any way other than with traditional spacing. So, I let the interior application pictures inspire a new way to install the exterior batten strips which I think gives this home a unique feature that adds to its curb appeal. This was an example where I was able to be inspired by an idea I had seen in one context and apply it to a new setting and it worked. But this is not always the case. For example, wallpaper is another popular wall treatment for feature walls, but could never work as exterior cladding. It might look cool upon initial installation but because wallpaper is made of... well, paper… it would not be able to withstand the inevitable changing weather conditions. This application would be detrimental, not only to the wallpaper but also to the protection of the house. The same can be said about scripture In 2 Timothy 3:16-17 Paul tells us that 16 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17 so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. While all scripture is inspired by God, it is important that each scripture be studied in the context in which it was written for it to be accurately interpreted and correctly used to teach, guide, correct, and or comfort. Studying the context means reading the verses around the scripture to fully understand the author's intent and meaning behind the words. It is also helpful to understand the historical setting and the author’s background and personal experience when writing the text. Some scriptures are stand-alone verses that are nearly foolproof against human misinterpretation like John 3:16. “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. Jesus used these words to teach the religious leader Nicodemous how he could be born again and see the kingdom of God and those same words apply to us today. But other scriptures, if cherry-picked out of the bible without context, could actually do more harm than good and be interpreted in a way that is completely contradictory to its intended meaning. For example, Luke 12:19 is red letter scripture meaning it was said by Jesus himself and it says: And I’ll say to myself, “You have plenty of grain laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.” ’ Without looking at the context, one might conclude that Jesus taught his followers to store up earthly riches with the goal of having a happy, care-free life. But when we read vs 19, within the context of the scripture, we see that these red letters were part of a parable Jesus was telling about a “Rich Fool”. It takes us reading through to verse 21 to see Jesus' main point in his message. Verse 21 explains that a person is a fool to store up early wealth but not have a rich relationship with God. You can see how this scripture quoted alone would have an outcome similar to wallpaper installed on an outside wall- it would go against the author and creator’s intended application and purpose. When we quote or apply scripture out of context we run the risk of promoting our own agenda instead of the Lord’s. But when we study the inspired word of God within the context it was written, we can trust it to give us timeless truths and instructions for living a life pleasing to our Heavenly Father. Thanks for allowing me to share another renovation with you and for joining me as we discover God’s love and restoration for our lives here on Storybook Homes.

Believers are to shine the light of the love of God to the world.

The Lord is patient and gracious and extends us an invitation to heaven.   ~~~   Welcome to another episode of Storybook Homes. Today I’m standing in the recently completed renovation of another short-term rental project. One of the main goals for this project was to maximize the occupancy capacity of this small cottage to appeal to a larger number of guests. Maximum occupancy in the hospitality industry is based on how many people can comfortably sleep in a space and is often referred to as “heads in beds”. In its original layout, this home offered 2 small bedrooms and one bathroom. Which would have comfortably hosted a family or group of 4 with 2 people, per bedroom. To increase the heads in beds of this property, I carved out space in the hallway for a cute set of bunk beds by relocating the furnace to the attic and the master bedroom entrance to just outside the dining room. And just like that, maximum occupancy went from 4 to 6. Because 6 people sharing one bathroom might be a little crowded, we also converted the existing sun-porch into a second bath for the master suite. The overall footprint of this home did not change during the renovation, but with some thoughtful rearranging of the existing floor plan, we were able to maximize the heads in beds for maximum occupancy. Adding the bathroom and rearranging the floorplan to accommodate 2 more guests extended the timeline and budget of the renovation, but my client felt these changes would be worth the investment in the long run. This goal to maximize occupancy can also be seen in the Lord’s preparation of heaven for his beloved children. When Jesus came to earth and conquered death he provided a way for Anyone who believes in him to enter eternal life in his Father’s house. Jesus told his disciples in John chapter 14: 2 There are many rooms in my Father’s house. I would not tell you this if it were not true. I am going there to prepare a place for you. 3 After I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back. Then I will take you with me, so that you can be where I am. Not only did Jesus enable maximum occupancy in Heaven by extending the invitation to anyone (Jew or Gentile) who would accept his free gift of salvation, we also learn in 2 Peter chapter 3 that the Lord is purposefully holding back the day of Judgement to give as many people as possible the opportunity to repent and accept this invitation. Here’s what Peter says: 3 Most importantly, I want to remind you that in the last days scoffers will come, mocking the truth and following their own desires. 4 They will say, “What happened to the promise that Jesus is coming again? From before the times of our ancestors, everything has remained the same since the world was first created.” He then provides an answer to this question in vs 9. 9 The Lord isn’t really being slow about his promise, as some people think. No, he is being patient for your sake. He does not want anyone to be destroyed, but wants everyone to repent. Oh, I love how patient the Lord is and I’m so grateful he extended the invitation and prepared a place for me and for you to live with Him forever. Thanks for allowing me to share another renovation with you and for joining me as we discover God’s love and restoration for our lives here on Storybook Homes.

Jesus modeled servanthood for us.   ~~~   Welcome to another episode of Storybook Homes. Today, you are getting to witness one of the least glamorous parts of my job - trash pick up. I know, I know, not very exciting- but don’t tune me out just yet. This is a side of construction you might never see on popular channels, but it’s both necessary for a safe workspace and, for me, it’s a key component of my leadership strategy. As the General Contractor and Project Manager, my job is to oversee the skilled tradesmen and women I hire to implement the design of the project. I hire most jobs out because quite frankly I do not have the skillset to do it myself. I mean, I wouldn’t even know where to begin to rewire or plumb a house. But, one thing I am fully capable of doing is clean up. Now, I don’t always do the cleaning up myself, but when I have the time I like to do it as a way of showing my team that I am not going to ask them to do anything I’m not willing to do myself. I’m not above getting my hands dirty to get the job done. I also hope that when my sub-contractors see me cleaning up, they will recognize that a clean job site is important to me and they will then be more likely to clean up after themselves. This leadership style was taught and modeled by Jesus during his short earthly ministry. During Jesus’ days, it was customary for the priest to be treated like royalty, waited on hand and foot, and given the best seat in the house. Jesus turned that thinking upside down when he taught his disciples to lead by being servants. In Matthew 20 vs 25- 28 he teaches his disciples: 25 But Jesus called them together and said, “You know that the rulers in this world lord it over their people, and officials flaunt their authority over those under them. 26 But among you it will be different. Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant, 27 and whoever wants to be first among you must become your slave. 28 For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many.” Jesus did not just command his followers to practice servanthood, he modeled it. Perhaps the greatest example of this was when we see Jesus washing his disciples’ feet. In John 13 After washing their feet, he put on his robe again and sat down and asked, “Do you understand what I was doing? 13 You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and you are right, because that’s what I am. 14 And since I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash each other’s feet. 15 I have given you an example to follow. Do as I have done to you. 16 I tell you the truth, slaves are not greater than their master. Nor is the messenger more important than the one who sends the message. 17 Now that you know these things, God will bless you for doing them. Don't you think this image of the Son of God humbling himself to serve them came to mind anytime the disciples were faced with an unpleasant task in their future ministries? What action can you take to model humility and servanthood to those you have been tasked to lead? Let’s follow Jesus’ example and seek ways to put this reminder into practice. Thanks for joining me for another chapter of Storybook Homes.

The blood of Jesus covers the imperfections of believers.   ~~~   Welcome to another Storybook Renovation. I know right now it looks like I’m standing in the middle of a crime scene with all the red you see smeared across the house, but that red stuff is not blood; it’s a product my painters use called bondo. Bondo is used to cover all the flaws and imperfections in the wood surfaces that will be painted. When it dries, the surface is sanded smooth to allow for a flawless paint finish. Without this step the paint might temporarily hide imperfections, like hairline cracks and brad holes in the wood, but with time, these flaws will eventually bleed through. When bondo is applied to all the imperfections, it permanently fills in the gaps, cracks, and holes so that once it is sanded and painted, you will never see the imperfections again. You know this bondo is a good illustration of how Christ’s blood covers over our sins or imperfections. I remember growing up in church singing the old hymn “Nothing but the blood” and being confused how God could use sticky, messy blood to take away my sins. You remember the words: What can wash away my sins- Nothing but the blood of Jesus What can make me whole again- Nothing but the blood of Jesus Then the song goes on to say “ oh precious is the flow, that makes me white as snow.” This was such a hard concept for me to grasp. But now I more fully understand. Just like a fresh coat of paint on a flawed surface can temporarily hide imperfections, the old testament allowed for animal and grain sacrifices to temporarily atone for the Jews sins, but it did not permanently remove their sin. The sacrifice temporarily appeased God until sin revealed itself again. But, when Christ came to earth and lived a blameless, flawless life, His blood sacrifice permanently filled the gaps that our sin left. When we accept the gift of his sacrifice, our sins will never be seen by our Heavenly Father again. It is Jesus’ blood that gives us a flawless finish before our God.

The God who made all things is worthy of our praise.   ~~~   Welcome to another Storybook Home. Today, I am standing in the recently remodeled kitchen of one of my clients.In addition to the kitchen, my team and I also tackled 2 outdated bathrooms and a few other small projects during this renovation. Kitchens and baths are nothing new to my team but what made this project unique is that we had just 3 weeks to get the bulk of the renovation done. You see, this family had planned on living in their home during the renovation which is always a special kind of stressful – but when I learned they had just welcomed home a newborn baby boy, I knew the inevitable construction dust and noise would make a stressful situation downright miserable with a baby. Therefore, I strongly encouraged the family to move out of their home for at least a short period of time to allow my team and I to get as much of the messy, smelly, noisy parts of the project done before they returned. They agreed to 3 weeks. For a project of this magnitude, normally, I would budget at least 3 months, but I was grateful for the 3 weeks the family allotted and was determined to make the most of the time given. To give my team the greatest chance of success with this near impossible goal, I did as much pre-planning, ordering, and scheduling as possible in the weeks leading up to the start date. The moment the family drove away, my team ascended on the home and got to work. During the three weeks the family was gone, I had subcontractors on site from 5 am to as late as midnight, 6 out of the 7 days a week. It was insane! There were a few times I was afraid some of my subs would walk off the job and block any future calls from me for how hard I was pushing them. But in the end, everyone came together and went above and beyond to help us meet our goal. I ended up revealing the remodeled home to this sweet family of 4 at 8pm on the last night of our 3 week deadline. I left that night bone-tired and pretty much slept the next four days. This crazy 3 week renovation gave me a fresh perspective on just how incredibly amazing it is to think that the Lord created the whole universe in just 6 days! I mean, I’ve heard the creation story since I was in preschool, but I had never really thought about the magnitude of this miracle. I was pushed to my near breaking point to simply renovate an existing kitchen and 2 bathrooms in 21 days. And as hard as it is to admit, I know all our efforts will be outdated and in need of a new renovation in another 15 to 20 years. Whereas God created the heavens and the earth and all that populate it from SCRATCH and in just 6 days. And His creation has stood the test of time for thousands of years. This is the God we serve! He is so worthy of our praise! And, let me just tell you from my personal experience… He was so deserving of that 7th day of Rest (wink wink). Thanks for allowing me to share another renovation with you and for joining me as we discover God’s restoration for our lives here on Storybook Homes.

To follow Jesus, our actions must match our heart.   ~~~   When I’m designing a house, it’s important to me that the design is cohesive both inside and out. I want each room to have its own personality yet be cohesive in telling the same story. For example, when hired to renovate this short-term rental, I playedoff the fact that this property was in close proximity to the local tennis courts to come up with a vintage preppy theme. I then let this theme dictate the color scheme, fixtures, and finishes of the home. Not only do you see this theme from room to room and even in the bathroom, but I was also mindful to carry the theme to the exterior of this house as well. Now I’ll admit when renovation budgets are tight it is very tempting to want to spend the entire budget on interior updates alone. But if I had neglected to address the broken windows, chipped paint, wobbly handrails, and overgrown landscape on the outside, it wouldn’t have mattered how cute the inside was. Guests would be tempted to turn around and leave when they pulled up to the house and saw what little care and attention was given to the exterior. The exterior is the first impression of a home and whether true or not, sets the expectation of what one expects to find on the inside. So, I made sure the outside of this home was a true reflection of what guests would find on the inside, in both the care and maintenance as well as the design. And I truly think it was divine intervention when it hit me that this Tennis themed house was found on Prince St.   This cohesive theme from inside and out should be the goal of our spiritual life as well. What benefit is there if you read the bible or attend church on Sunday in your private life but then live a life that does not reflect Christ in your public life?   James, Jesus’ brother, says it this way, “But don’t just listen to God’s word. You must do what it says. Otherwise you are only fooling yourselves. For if you listen to the word and don’t obey, it is like glancing at your face in a mirror. You see yourself, walk away, and forget what you look like. But if you look carefully into the perfect law that sets you free, and if you do what it says and don’t forget what you heard, then God will bless you for doing it.” James 1: 22-25. The opposite can be just as harmful. If you proclaim to be a christian in your public life but do nothing to feed your spiritual life on the inside... Well, just listen to how Jesus himself describes those that live with this kind of incoherence.   “You are like whitewashed tombs-beautiful on the outside but filled on the inside with dead people’s bones and all sorts of impurity. Outwardly you look like righteous people, but inwardly your hearts are filled with hypocrisy and lawlessness.” -Matthew 23: 27-28.   Yikes. It doesn’t matter how nice and shiny your outside appears, Jesus sees and knows what is on the inside. When we surrender our lives to the will of God, making Jesus the central theme of our life, our outside and inside will be cohesive. Thanks for allowing me to share another renovation with you and for joining me as we discover God’s restoration for our lives here on Storybook Homes.

When renovating an old home there are ALWAYS surprises and design challenges that will come up during a renovation. Maybe a wall I had hoped to open up is hiding a pipe that would be too expensive to move or is load-bearing and my budget won’t support the size of beam it would require to open the space up completely without a support column. Sometimes there is an awkward space in the floor plan that I’m not sure what to do with or I discover the previous homeowner did not run the flooring under the cabinetry so I have to find money in my budget to replace all the flooring or come up with a creative solution to patch the missing flooring that was exposed in the redesign. When I was first starting out in this business, these surprises often seemed like insurmountable roadblocks and would leave me so discouraged. But over the years, I’ve discovered these challenges force me to think outside the box and come up with creative solutions that often result in some of my favorite features of the home. Here are a few examples from recent projects. At Ms Penny's Place, I was tasked to redesign the kitchen layout while utilizing as much of the old kitchen cabinets and countertops as possible. I went into the project assuming I would be able to use the countertops off of the desk we were eliminating on the expanded oven area. However, during the renovation, I discovered the depth of the desk countertops were not the same as the other countertops therefore my plan would not work. Rather than blowing the budget to replace all the countertops so they would all match, I simply replaced the area around the oven and turned it into a feature-the butcher block surround became one of my favorite features of the kitchen. And in my current flip project, I lost several nights of sleep trying to figure out what I could do with the tight space leading into the Jack and Jill bathroom. I had already taken the doors down to a minimum of 24”. Even with these narrow doors, I was still going to have an awkward trim situation with the door framed as close to the wall as possible. Because I could figure out no way around the awkward trim situation, I chose to highlight the awkwardness and make it a feature rather than try to hide it. Now this special door trim that is only found in this section of the home is my favorite design feature of this bathroom. As I’ve gained experience, the surprise challenges have not gone away, I have just shifted how I think and react to those challenges. I now see them as creative design opportunities versus insurmountable roadblocks. The Bible also talks about making a shift in how you think about challenges. In James 1 vs 2-4 Paul encourages believers to “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.” Joy is not our first thought when life throws a trial our way. But, when we make a conscious decision to approach our trials knowing there is an opportunity to learn and grow, it is easier to find joy through the trial. Even when we can’t see how the surprise or challenge will work out in the end. And just think, the more difficult the challenge is, and the more impossible it seems in our own strength, the more Jesus has the opportunity to shine. This shift in mindset may not come naturally, but with practice, it does get easier. And the more often you trust Jesus to help you through your trials, the easier it becomes to trust him with the next one. Don’t be surprised if the solution God leads you to becomes one of your favorite parts of your story. If you enjoyed this inside look into the restoration process, you can see more videos like these at lifeword.org. I'll see you again soon as we begin another project on Storybook Homes.

Welcome to my latest project. I initially set out to renovate this home as a flip-meaning I would fully renovate the home before I put it back on the market to look for a buyer. But because this home is quite a bit bigger than I typically flip, I decided to approach this renovation a little differently. For this home, I looked for a pre-renovation buyer-someone who would purchase the home prior to the first swing of the sledgehammer and then trust me to turn this home into their dream house. This approach takes all the financial risk off of me, but means that I no longer have full control over the home's design decisions-something that is sometimes hard for me to give up. While I will certainly make suggestions throughout the renovation, ultimately my job will be to figure out what my client wants and then carry out their wishes for their home.   I start this process by first sitting down with them and working through a design questionnaire that helps me identify what style they gravitate to as well as their wants, needs, and desires for their new home. I also encourage them to create and share Pinterest boards with me of rooms and features of homes they love. Then throughout the project, I will present options for different finishes I think align with what they communicated to me on the questionnaire or from inspirational pictures they have sent me. At first, I might have to go through lots of options before finding the perfect fit. But by the end of the project, after we have spent a great deal of time together, I can usually present a winning design option the first time.   The same can be said of the time spent getting to know the Lord. In Ephesians 5 vs 10 the bible says “Find out what pleases the Lord”. The only way to do this is to spend time with Him by reading His words in the Bible and talking to Him in prayer. I encourage you to open your Bible with that goal in mind. Not just to find out what you should or shouldn’t do, but to find out what pleases the Lord. I promise this approach to reading the Bible will not only increase your knowledge, but will greatly strengthen your relationship with the Lord. After you’ve invested some time in finding out what pleases the Lord, you will be amazed at how you can anticipate what the Lord would want for you and others in your everyday life and circumstances. Just like my cultivated relationship with my clients -after some time getting to know what the Lord likes and dislikes, I will see things throughout my day that remind me of my God that help me remain close to Him throughout my day.   I hope you can do the same. Thanks for diving into another renovation with me as we discover God's restoration for our lives here on Storybook Homes.

Every role in the church is important.

God cares about the details of our lives.

Regardless of what your resolutions look like this year, God gives you new mercies every morning.

Jesus is the architect of accessibility in our lives as He gave us ultimate access to the Father.

Sharing the Gospel isn't supposed to be hard or scary. We should be excited to share the Good News of Jesus Christ!

When the storms of life hit, we must have a solid foundation in Christ to make it through.

When we allow Jesus to heal our brokenness, He will not see our past sin but rather the beautiful new creation that we are.

God wants us to rest.

Does your life give off a pleasing aroma to God?

We can pray for God to reveal how to use our gifts.

Christians have our own language to describe our beliefs.

We should come alongside fellow believers to help them.

What legacy will you leave?