I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. Galatians 2:20

Over the past couple of months, we have been living through a kitchen renovation. As part of that renovation, doorways have been removed and the curved archways that date the home have been squared up and replastered ready for a coat of paint. A few weeks ago, I decided to prime the gyprock and repaint the walls using the leftover paint that was still stored in the garage from repair work that happened when the ceiling caved in during a storm (that’s another story)! I checked the colour. I looked at the label. Hogsbristle Half Strength. I was ready to go. I cut in the edges, rolled the walls where it was needed to blend into the existing paintwork and waited for the first coat to dry. An hour or so later, I went to admire my handiwork and discovered two different colours on the wall. The freshly painted walls were darker than the existing walls. I rechecked the label and it was definitely half strength. But a visit to my local paint centre confirmed that while the label said one thing, the contents of the tin were actually another - full strength Hogsbristle! A slight change in the measure of tint added to the paint made all the difference to how it looked on the wall. It was obvious to everyone who saw it.

It got me thinking about our lives as Christians. So often, we want to blend into the world around us. We don’t want to stand out, be noticed, or draw attention to ourselves. What often happens is that the contents of our lives are different from the label we bear. Christ wants the label and the contents to match. Rather than trying to blend in, Christ wants us to be different; to be part of his transforming work in the world. Just as adding tint to a tin of paint changes the whole colour, a life that is tinted with Christ, will be transformed. Christ in you, changes you. Christ in you colours you. Christ in you is noticeable! A tint of the crucified, risen and ascended Christ reduces the darkness of the world around you. A tint of his love in you, transforms the feel of every room you enter. A tint of his mercy and grace in you, poured out on the lives of others will be evident for the whole world to see. Christ wants what is on the label, his life in you, to bring a totally new look to every room and space that he uses you in. Christ in you, is the right measure of tint in every situation!

How has the tint of Christ transformed your life and how can you let it permeate more and more of your life?

Lord Jesus, more of you and less of me. Add the right measure of tint to my life that as you pour me out in the world, it may be visibly noticeable and bring light and life to every place. Amen.

Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” Matthew 28:19-20

One of the blessings of the COVID-19 isolation time is that many people have found time to do projects around the home that have remained undone for a long time. For me, that was fixing the half-a dozen mowers/brushcutters given to me, that were taking up too much space up in my garage. I just hadn’t found the time needed to fix them and move them on.

Small engines can be temperamental at the best of times. When they haven’t been used in a while, they can be downright frustrating. You pull and pull and pull and it gives you nothing. Sometimes you might get a brief sign of life but then all you end up with is a sore arm. It doesn’t matter how many times you pull the start cord, berate or kick the machine, it will not roar into life. But on a lot of small engines, they have a little button called a primer bulb. When you press it down, usually three times, it draws fuel from the tank into the carburettor to give a bit extra petrol to enable combustion and kickstart the engine so that it can roar into life.

It’s this action of priming the engine that comes to mind as we try and get life kickstarted again. It was like Covid-19 suddenly starved the engine of our lives of fuel and we came to a sudden halt. Now after a couple of months of being stuck in the garage, we are ready to get out and get the engines running again. But kickstarting the engine can sometimes be hard. Maybe you have settled into a different routine with your time - working from home, curling up on the couch with a remote in the hand – and there is a reluctance to go back to the way things were? Perhaps, you are being cautious and the wisdom you share is simply because deep down you are afraid something might happen and you’ll get sick? Or that no sooner than you restart and build some momentum, that your life will shutdown again? Business’, charities, churches and individuals are facing those very issues all across the globe at this present time.

One of the mowers in my garage had been sitting for so long without use, that the fuel had caramelised in the carburettor bowl. It simply would not start. But a good clean out of the fuel system, new fuel and three pushes on the primer bulb, and the mower roared into life. Could God be using this time to prime the engine of your heart so that you are ready to serve and love in a new way? Could God be letting you rest for a while; transitioning and cleansing your life in order to launch you out into the world, where the lawn has grown long in this time of uncertainty? Get ready, for there is work to be done, a harvest to be reaped and there is no engine that God cannot fix and get going again. Your primer bulb may just about to be pushed in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, your starter cord pulled, and your life about to ignite with a power that will get you moving. Are you ready? A brand new day is here, the garage door is lifting up, and God has chosen you to be a part of bringing new life to the world.

Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, ignite my life with power and love that I may go and complete the work you have prepared for me to do. Amen.

The third time he said to him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, “Do you love me?” He said, “Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Feed my sheep.” John 21:17

What does it take to get some things through to you? A tragedy? A near miss? A stern word? A phone call out of the blue? How many times do you need to be told something before it sinks in? Those are the questions that I have been pondering this week as I stare at three sinks, stacked one on top of the other, on the floor of our half renovated kitchen.

It shouldn’t have been that hard. A sink was chosen, ordered and delivered. It’s just that the sink in the box didn’t match the sink depicted on the box. It was the same the second time. The third time around, you would have thought it would be checked and rechecked. Much to our dismay, the third sink with the dimensions of the sink clearly printed on the outside, could not have possibly fit in the size of box that it was delivered in. You can imagine the sinking feeling we experienced, when we opened the box to discover the wrong sink again, adding a two week delay to finishing the renovation. How many times do you need to tell people something before it sinks in?

How many times? Peter had that sinking feeling on a number of fronts when Jesus asked him the same question three times after the resurrection, “Do you love me?” How many times do you think Peter had kicked himself for his failure a few days before? How many times do you think he had relived the decision he made to deny Jesus beside that charcoal fire?’ Peter was hurt. The text tells us that. He was also hurting. Yet Jesus came to Peter and asked him three times, beside another charcoal fire, about the genuineness of his love. It wasn’t to shame him, but to reclaim him. To reaffirm his calling. To remind him of his purpose. Jesus wants Peter to grasp the reality of grace that renews, restores, revives and sends with a promise that it won’t ever give up on him, even in failure.

Do you need to be reminded of that today? Are you walking around with a sinking feeling in your gut because of guilt or shame? Are you down on yourself because of past or present failures? Are you struggling to let God’s love be absorbed in your heart? Then let this sink in. Jesus loves you and nothing you do will change that. The cross is a living demonstration of his commitment to you. His resurrection is proof that his grace will not give up on you - even when you fail, even when you mess up, even when your words don’t match your actions. Jesus will keep on declaring day after day his unfailing love for you, his ongoing delight in you, and his enduring calling and purpose for you until it sinks in. No matter how many times it takes to get through, no matter how much reminding you need, Jesus will not let up until it penetrates your mind, is absorbed into your heart and transforms the way you live day after day.

Lord Jesus, may the depth of your enduring love for me sink in and transform my life each day. Amen.