Renovations

Renovations are messy. They take time and energy. You have to begin them with some idea of what you want the finished product to look like. And they always seem to take longer and cost more than you initially anticipated.

New channels for the electrical wiring

This summer, I spent 2 months housesitting for missionary friends of mine while they were in the US. Since I wasn’t living in my apartment, I figured this was the perfect time to have some much-needed work done to my apartment. First, the 60-year-old Communist-era aluminum electrical wiring was replaced with standard copper wiring. In Romania, this involves chiseling into the brick & plaster walls, creating a HUGE mess of dust and debris, so afterwards, someone else had to come and replaster the walls (which means even more dust). Once that was done, I had my hardwood floor refinished. By the end of August, it was ready for me to paint the walls and move my furniture back in.

My new vacuum cleaner

In this 2-month process, I had to move everything out of my living room and bedroom. It was an opportune time to purge things that I don’t need any more. I also realized that I’ve been living with a lot of broken things – from a couch that you could literally fall through when you sat down, to a vacuum cleaner that doesn’t work well and recently lost a wheel. Many of these things were in the apartment when I moved in back in 2009 or were things I purchased right after moving in. So, I’m purchasing a few long-overdue household items to go in my newly-renovated apartment. But even though I’ve moved back in, I know the work isn’t done. I’m still unpacking my belongings, trying to remember the “safe place” where I stashed certain items, and, unfortunately, still finding construction dust just about everywhere. Although these are sometimes frustrating inconveniences, they are greatly outweighed by the improvements to the apartment.


The other renovation project I’m overseeing is the restructuring of our legal organization. Our organization was established 30 years ago and has functioned as the legal entity under which Nazarene activities take place in Romania. But like my apartment, it was long overdue for an update. When I became district superintendent last year, we made some organizational changes so I am now also the director of the organization. I’ve been working with the lawyer and accountant to get things set up properly: everything from updating the statutes to overhauling our banking structure.

This summer, when I’d stop by my apartment, it was sometimes overwhelming. I saw a disaster. A few times I began to question if I’d be able to move back in by the end of summer (or ever!). It sometimes feels like that when I think about our organizational restructuring. This transition is taking longer than I had hoped. Yet, when I think back at where we were a year ago, I’m encouraged by all the progress we’ve made.

It’s now time to get back to normal. But it won’t be a return to the old normal. Instead, it means entering a new normal -- a newly-renovated apartment and a newly-restructured organization. Short-term inconveniences now will result in the long-term benefits of living in a clean and comfortable apartment and an organization that is better positioned for current and expanding ministry.