Broken Pieces and Restoration

Thanksgiving is an important holiday for the Christian. We can NEVER be too thankful or overly appreciative to God, can we?  And Christmas is really beyond our comprehension (mine at least) in an earthly manner – that God would send HIS HOLY SON to a sin-sick world for the benefit and blessing of that world! Not in majesty and splendor, but as a humble babe so many years ago in Bethlehem. Not in fancy accoutrement, but wrapped in swaddling clothes, in a manger.  Yes…this IS a season of thankfulness and giving!

Yet, although highly blessed, maybe someone in your family, maybe you, maybe a friend or someone you love is going through a period of feeling broken. Pure brokenness.  Maybe you are going through a significant heart-ache. Something that feels like your heart has been broken into pieces. It’s hard to breathe. It’s difficult to keep your mind focused. You, or the one you care about, have been in a situation of discouragement. A time in your life where you’re grasping onto straws to keep going, while many people around you seem to be sailing on with ease. Perhaps you’ve cried tears that only you and God know about. Maybe you’ve been grieved in your spirit even though your mind and heart recognize that you’re richly blessed? (You are human, after all).

Sometimes when your heart is broken, we tend to limp along like a wounded animal. We can feel discarded – it’s hard to know which direction to go – sometimes our hearts are so shattered that it’s hard to even know where to begin again. You feel unused by God; and used by mankind. Words and actions like rejection, betrayal, disingenuousness, dismissal, hypocrisy, and disloyalty can start to feel more familiar and intimate than you ever cared to know!

Take a moment to look at the picture I posted in today’s blog - it was posted on a friend’s Facebook page. When I first saw it, it took me several seconds to figure out what it was. I knew it was a nativity figure – possibly a shepherd or wise man.

Yes, she confirmed, it was/is a wise man figurine. The wise man has sentimental value to her. He/it was part of a nativity set given to her by her parents in 1998. Instead of tossing the broken pieces out, she made the decision to restore them to a useful condition! He was a token of love, after all.

 I soon realized she had taped the wise man back together because his body was broken. God used her actions to illustrate to me an intimate part of His character!  (Life Lesson: Broken people; broken lives are NOT discarded by God! We are tokens of HIS love!) So what if it/he wasn’t in perfect condition? He STILL fulfilled his life’s calling. He was one of THREE wise men…a valuable part of the nativity set. He has a purpose in his brokenness! And so do you!

Our heavenly Father is no stranger to pain…no stranger of abandonment or scorn. At the end of Jesus’ earthly life – perhaps the darkest hours of His life on earth – he was rejected, hurt, and abandoned by his dearest friends. Men he’d spend his final years with. While He was pouring His heart out to His Father, the disciples were sleeping. Yes, our Savior experienced the distress of a broken heart. (Matthew 27)

The past couple of months have brought unprecedented and painfully marked heartbreak for my family. For some of my friends too. When our true-blue friends hurt – we hurt. One thing I learned is that nobody’s heartbreak is the same, and nobody’s deepest heartbreak can be healed (our hearts and minds restored) except by and through Jesus Christ! Saying good- bye to people you love, closing the door on dreams, and moving forward in the spirit of God isn’t easy!

 “Brokenness” may not be the route we choose for ourselves, but in the process of restoration, God illustrates for us, glimpses of WHO He is! Amen.

Look UP my friends!

Today’s Prayer:  Heavenly Father, you know the people who have a broken heart today. Your children distressed by pain. I don’t know what their heart break looks like – or acts like - but I know YOU can restore all things broken, shattered, and devastated! When the storm rages, we thank you for being our Anchor. When the enemy approaches, you offer your Shield. May you redeem our heart aches, and in the process, continue to show us who YOU are. For your glory. I thank you for your blessings! In Jesus’ name, Amen.