Brandi Jo Little, Author

Come into our home at any given time, and you'll likely smell sawdust or perhaps a fresh coat of paint. You'll see a toolbox or two, strategically placed so no tiny hands can't reach. You might even hear the reverberation of a sander bringing old floors back to life, or the shockingly loud sound of a ShopVac cleaning up one of many messes.

Welcome to our fixer upper. Life is chaotic here, never fully finished. But we're making a home. And in the middle of all of the sawdust, paint fumes, and loud noises, we've found something unexpected. Or rather, Someone.

We've found God.

Listening beyond the sounds of a fixer-upper, we've heard His quiet whispers of truth.

Here are some things I've learned while renovating our home:

1) Just like a wall that needs a fresh coat of paint, sometimes all we need is a fresh start.

2) Just like old carpet that needs ripped away to reveal beautiful wood floors, sometimes God needs to take things away to lead to something better.

3) Just like 120-year-old floors with layers of paint, glue, and stain, sometimes we need to go through the pain of having our layers stripped away to get to the good stuff underneath. (John 15:2)

4) Just like when something unexpected breaks, sometimes we need to realize we really aren't in control of much - and that's a good thing.

5) Just like when we dive into a project that seems so simple yet is anything but, sometimes we need to go the hard way to get to the good way.


Pictured is our little lady's nursery that is in the middle of a complete gut-job. Scroll to see some before and currently photos!