First impressions. You and I have looked at people and developed a first impression. You know what I mean...when you meet someone for the first time and something sticks out either good or bad with which you judge them. "My goodness she is syrupy sweet" or "Can you believe he got THAT piercing!" I have learned something already from Anna's boat...dirt covers up beauty!
Why would I look at an individual and quickly rank them? Blame it on the gift of discernment or something but being a person of quick first impressions can make one miss out on beauty. Take this boat for example...when you first look at it and hear its history you may say "Oh my! There is no hope for this vessel. Lets make bookshelves!" Shame on me.
I filled a pail with soap and water and carefully at first, began scrubbing years of dirt, dust, bees nests and spider webs off this canoe. Would you believe that underneath all that caked on grime was beauty. Now that will preach!
Here is something else I found. On the stern stem, underneath the back seat there is a secret. The secret is a stamped ID number. The number its self is significant. In or around 1930 a group of craftsmen gathered around this canoe for weeks. First they carefully chose clear lumber (which was easily located in those days), then they meticulously bent and shaped the wood around forms, then they covered the canoe in canvas and painted the exterior and brushed the interior with paint and varnish respectfully. They polished the boat and stamped the ID number into the hull to not only ID the craft but also the manufacturer.Each person is handcrafted according to God's specifications. Our Heavenly Father made us all originals and put His mark on us identifying us with Him.
Do you feel broken, dust covered, neglected? Its about time your beauty shined through! Christ makes "all things new." Be restored!
So, its easy to quickly look at the bad things. In this case once the dirt was washed off this boat is beautiful and not all that bad in the redo department. Here is what needs to be done:
- reconstruct the deck plates
- install new stems on bow and stern
- both gunwales need replaced due to dry rot
- canvas the entire boat
- waterproof/filler on the canvas
- install a keel and a brass stem band
- paint the outside of the hull
- apply UV resistant spar urethane to the interior
Over all the boat is in GREAT shape. Anna, get ready to float!
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